Argentina made it into the quarterfinals of the 2024 Copa América after a hard-fought 1-0 win against Chile on Tuesday. Lautaro Toro Martínez scored the only goal at the New Jersey MetLife Stadium in the dying moments of a match that looked poised to end in a frustrating draw for the Albiceleste.

Although Argentina secured its pass to the knockout stage with this win, it still has to wait until final group positions are determined to find out who its rival will be. Argentina and the other team that makes it out of Group A will play the two from Group B, where Venezuela, Jamaica, Mexico, and Ecuador are competing for second-round passes. 

The game started off with Scaloni’s squad dominating but unable to score. Chile played them fiercely, trying to interrupt their ball movement and keep them far away from their goal. Argentina found its footing thanks to its high pressure and practically surrounded goalkeeper Claudio Bravo’s box. 

The clearest chance of the first half came courtesy of a long kick from Lionel Messi, who found himself with the ball and just the right amount of time to launch a strike that sizzled across the pitch and missed the mark by centimeters, brushing Bravo’s left post before going out of bounds. 

Messi also gave Argentine fans a scare in the first half when he seemed to hurt his right adductor after suffering a hard foul against the sidelines. He called for medical assistance and was seen slightly limping for a while, but went on playing and even finished the game. He later said he felt a pinch in the area at the beginning of the game and would have it checked out on Wednesday.   

The second half started off pretty much the same way as the first had ended. Argentina had two clear chances to break the Chilean defense. Defender Nahuel Molina came in front of the goal after a Messi pass, but Bravo managed to save his kick. Striker Nicolás González had a clear look and his strike ended up bouncing off the top post. 

Although Argentina’s defense was stellar during most of the match, exhaustion seemed to catch up with them late in the game, and La Roja managed to get close enough to goalkeeper Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez to test him. The goalie responded in full, saving two kicks from Chilean attackers to keep Argentina’s hope of winning alive. 

The game seemed destined for a draw when Messi got up to the right side of the pitch at the 88 minute mark to execute a corner kick. The ball dropped in the box and, after a series of bounces, found its way to Lautaro Martínez. El Toro, who had come in to replace Julián Álvarez, hit the ball to the back of the net to score the only goal of the game and send Argentine fans into a frenzy. 

Argentina’s final group stage match will be on Saturday against Peru at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami at 8 p.m. local time, 9 p.m., Argentina time. Chile will play Canada at the same time, and the results will determine what position Scaloni’s team ends up in.