Mexico City.- Lautaro Martínez ended up being the hero for the Argentina national team, which achieved second place in the 2024 Copa América after beating Colombia 1-0 in a Final that was marred by an act of total disorganization prior to the start of the match.
The Inter Milan striker came off the bench to give the club their 16th South American title, after a great pass from Giovani Lo Celso, beating Camilo Vargas in the 112th minute.
Before the game, hundreds of fans slammed the doors at Hard Rock Stadium, prompting authorities to arrest a few intrepid individuals who decided to start the disorder.
In fact, the meeting had to start more than an hour late.
Already in the match, both teams sought to break the defensive lines, something they did not do in the first 90 minutes.
Both Emiliano Martínez and Camilo Vargas responded when they were needed. The Atlas goalkeeper prevented a shot from Ángel Di María from breaking the tie by coming out and closing in on the Argentine striker.
The Argentines were weakened by the departure of star player Lionel Messi, who could no longer continue and asked to be substituted in the 66th minute.
In the 87th minute, Ángel Di María put a great ball to the far post, Nicolás González got up to put in a pass, but he couldn’t find a teammate to put the ball into the net.
Already in extra time, at 95′, González again let the long-awaited goal slip away, but Vargas was the one truly responsible for preventing it almost on the goal line.
In extra time, Colombia had the championship-winning goal from Miguel Borja, but the River Plate striker was unable to convert, unlike Lautaro, who scored with the decisiveness that characterizes him and gave the Albiceleste the title.
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