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Argentina defeated Austria 2-0 this Monday at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, becoming the first team to qualify from with six points and two victories in two matches.
The undisputed protagonist was Lionel Messi, whose goal in the 38th minute opened the scoring and solidified his status as the all-time top scorer in World Cup history with 17 goals, surpassing Miroslav Klose's 16.
But Messi was not satisfied and in injury time sealed the Argentine victory. 18 goals, to extend his record.
The Argentine captain had a bittersweet start: in the ninth minute, he missed a penalty that could have given the albiceleste an early lead. However, he shook off the mistake and, 29 minutes later, found the net with a standard shot to make it 1-0 before halftime.
Austria tried to react but without any real depth. The Europeans generated more corners (three against one), but Argentina controlled possession (54% to 46%) and was more dangerous with eight shots compared to five and two on target versus one.
The yellow card shown to Stefan Posch in the 40th minute highlighted the tension of a match that came to life with a flurry of substitutions in the second half. The Argentine coach made changes with Otamendi (57'), Julián Álvarez (64'), Nico González (65'), Leandro Paredes, and Nicolás Tagliafico (both in the 82nd minute). Austria responded with five substitutions of their own, including the introduction of Marko Arnautovic in the 68th minute.
In the final stretch, the simultaneous yellow cards for Facundo Medina and Konrad Laimer in the 76th minute raised the intensity, and Paredes received another one in injury time.
With this result, Argentina adds 6 points, five goals for and none against so far in the tournament. Austria remains in second place with three points after their victorious debut, winning 3-1 against Jordan. Jordan and Algeria, with zero points each, are practically eliminated.
The albiceleste arrives at this point with an impeccable run: on the first day, they defeated Algeria 3-0 with a hat trick from Messi at the Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.
The Group J finale will be held on June 27: Argentina will face Jordan at the AT&T Stadium, already qualified and as the leader, while Austria will seek to secure its spot against Algeria at Arrowhead Stadium.
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