Men’s Football
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15 July 2024
Martinez grabs extra-time winner as Argentina claim Copa America
A GOAL deep into extra-time by Lautaro Martinez gave Argentina a 1-0 win over Colombia and a record-breaking 16th Copa America title.
Argentina lost a tearful Lionel Messi to injury midway through the second half of a game, but Martinez came off the bench in the extra half hour to ensure his captain would lift a third successive major trophy.
The win in Miami followed the 2021 Copa America success and the World Cup triumph in 2022.
The match was marred by delays and kicked off an hour and 20 minutes late after security closed gates at the Dolphin Stadium, one of the sites for the 2026 World Cup, after fans attempted to enter the stadium without tickets.
A statement issued on X by stadium staff said: “Thousands of fans without tickets attempted to forcibly enter the stadium, putting other fans, security and law enforcement officers at extreme risk.”
The statement said gates had been shut “to control the entry process at a much slower rate and ensure everyone is kept safe.”
Kick-off was initially pushed back by half an hour before a further 15-minute delay.
The stadium said it had been delayed “until further notice” with the players finally returning to the pitch to warm up 40 minutes after the scheduled start with the match eventually getting underway more than an hour and 15 minutes late.
Miami-Dade County police department said there had been “several incidents” due to the “unruly behaviour of fans trying to access the stadium.”
A sellout crowd of more than 65,000 was expected with Conmebol, South America’s governing body, posting on X the day before the game that fans must have tickets to enter the car park.
The delay to the kick-off follows criticism of an extended half-time interval from 15 minutes to 25 minutes for a concert by Colombian singer Shakira.
Colombia coach Nestor Lorenzo said: “It should be like any game. It should be the 15 minutes according to the regulations.”
When the match finally got underway, Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez had an early chance for the defending champions but Colombia made the brighter start with Liverpool’s Luis Diaz forcing an early save from Camilo Vargas while Jhon Cordoba struck a post.
Alvarez inadvertently blocked an effort from Messi, who went down with what looked like an ankle injury before the break but was able to swing in a free-kick which Nicolas Tagliafico headed over.
The second half saw both teams have spells on the front foot, but neither side were able to seize control – Angel di Maria, in his last international appearance, forcing a couple of saves from Vargas.
Messi went down again just after the hour and this time was unable to continue, limping off to watch on in tears from the bench.
His replacement Nicolas Gonzalez had a couple of chances while Di Maria was unable to sort his feet out to fashion a shot after Colombia gave the ball away cheaply.
Gonzalez had the best chance of the first period of extra time, but could only shoot straight at Vargas following Rodrigo De Paul’s cut back.
Lisandro Martinez produced an excellent block on Miguel Borja as time ran out and within moments Argentina were ahead.
De Paul won the ball near halfway, finding Lautaro Martinez who exchanged passes with fellow substitute Giovani Lo Celso and the tournament’s top scorer made no mistake with a clear view of Vargas’s goal to end Colombia’s run of 28 unbeaten games.
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