Copa America: Argentina Will Have It Easy Against Ecuador in the Knockouts

Argentina vs Ecuador

Argentina are one of the three teams that finished with a 100-per cent record in the Copa America group stage, and they will aim to keep it that way when they take on Ecuador in the quarter-finals at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.

Lionel Scaloni’s men dominated Group A with three straight wins against Canada, Chile, and Peru, which was expected since they are the defending champions after all.

Ecuador, on the other hand, faced a tougher road to reach this far. They barely made it by having a superior goal difference over Mexico to finish second in Group B behind Venezuela.

Naturally, the pre-game SBOTOP betting odds are in favour of Argentina winning, even if they might not be in full force this Thursday.

 

Talking Points

Argentina sweating on Messi’s fitness

Lionel Messi didn’t play in Argentina’s final Group A match against Peru since they were already through to the knockouts and they were managing his workload. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner was benched due to a minor hamstring injury.

Messi’s hamstring has been a nagging issue all season, primarily due to his age, and he is upgraded to questionable to play against Ecuador after he trained with the team on Monday.

That’s why it’s a good thing that Lautaro Martinez is peaking at the right time for La Albiceleste, as he is currently the frontrunner for the Copa America Golden Boot award with four goals.

Late goals have been a thing for the Inter Milan striker, as Martinez found the back of the net in the 88^th minute against Canada and Chile, and he also had a brace against Peru on Sunday.

If Messi doesn’t play on Thursday, expect Lionel Scaloni to implement a 4-3-3 formation that was used against Peru (instead of their usual 4-4-2 formation), with Alejandro Garnacho likely to get another rare start.

Moreover, expect Scaloni to also call Cristian Romero, Lisandro Martinez, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez, and Nahuel Molina back into the starting XI after getting the night off against Peru.

 

Valencia back in the mix for Ecuador

Head coach Felix Sanchez will be looking to guide La Tricolor into the semi-finals of this competition for the first time since 1993, so it’s a good thing for him that he’ll have his biggest weapon back.

Long-time striker and skipper Enner Valencia is back after missing the game against Jamaica due to a red card he received against Venezuela in the 2-1 defeat in the opener.

The 34-year-old did play against Mexico last time out, but he didn’t score. Still, Ecuador came away with a goalless draw, which was enough to see them through.

Another Ecuadorian player who needs to have a stellar performance is their veteran goalie, Alexander Dominguez.

The 37-year-old saved four Mexican shots to secure his first clean sheet at the Copa America this year, but he might be in for a long night against a loaded Argentina squad capable of putting up Copa America 2024 highlights.

 

History

After winning the Copa America in 2021, Argentina became the joint-winningest team in tournament history alongside Uruguay with 15 trophies, and they’re aiming to break the deadlock this year.

The 2021 Copa America was also Lionel Messi’s first-ever major trophy for Argentina.

Argentina won six of their previous seven competitive fixtures against Ecuador (D1), including a 1-0 win in an international friendly last June, with their last loss being a 2-0 result in a World Cup qualifier in October 2015.

In stark contrast, Ecuador have never won a single Copa America. Their best finish ever in this tournament was when they were the fourth-placed team in 1959 and 1993.

The last time Ecuador scored in the Copa America quarter-finals was in 1997, when they were beaten 4-3 on penalties against Mexico after that match ended in a 1-1 draw.

 

Betting Tip

Barring unforeseen circumstances, Argentina should cruise to the semi-finals, where they’ll face the winner between Venezuela and Canada.

According to the latest Copa America 2024 odds, La Albiceleste are 1.42 favourites, whereas La Tricolor are 7.90 underdogs, and a draw is at 3.94 in the 1X2 market.

Argentina haven’t scored much more than they want to so far in this tournament, but they are due for a scoring barrage, and they might just do it against Ecuador. So, other than our recommended bet above, you may want to also go for options like Over 2.25 at 2.12, Over 2.50 at 2.42, Total Goal 2-3 at 1.91, or even Total Goal 4-6 at 4.34.

   

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