Lionel Messi and Argentina men’s national football team took the first step in its Copa America title defense, beating Canada 2-0 on Thursday in Atlanta. Lionel Scaloni’s team overcame a very resilient Les Rouges squad, having to wait until the second half for Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez to score and put the game on ice.

Despite the massive difference on paper — Argentina’s squad is valued at over four times Canada’s — the Albiceleste encountered a rival determined to ruin its day. In the first half, the Canadian team defended deep and looked to launch lightning quick counters on the wings, taking advantage of the gap behind Argentina’s attacking full-backs. 

Led by stars like Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies and Lille’s Jonathan David, Canada forced a number of saves by Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez and had plenty of close calls. Argentina’s biggest chance came at the eight minute mark, when forward Ángel Di María recovered the ball from a Canada corner and ran the length of the pitch, only to be denied by Canadian goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau.

In the second half, the difference in class became more apparent as Argentina took a stronger grip on the game. Just four minutes in, Messi found midfielder Alexis MacAllister with a ball in behind, which the Liverpool man put for the incoming Álvarez for 1-0.

Argentina kept dominating after the goal and had several big chances Crepeau managed to snuff out. It was only in the 88th minute that, with another through ball from Messi, substitute striker Martínez finished through the goalkeeper’s legs for the final score of 2-0.

“We had no space in the first half. They’re strong and work hard,” said Messi after the game. “In the second half, we were better; we were more comfortable, but it was a tough match.”

Scaloni drew comparisons with Argentina’s debut in the 2022 World Cup and expressed his discontent with the playing conditions. “It was similar [to the game against Saudi Arabia], but the difference was that in Qatar we played on a decent pitch. They knew we were coming seven months ago and they changed the grass two days ago. The pitch wasn’t up to our players’ level.” He also highlighted his team’s capacity to create scoring chances but lamented the ease with which Canada created its own, something he’ll “analyze in detail later.”

Argentina’s 2024 Copa America campaign continues on Tuesday, when it will go up against Chile at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. The match is set to kick off at 9 p.m. local time, 10 p.m. Argentina.