Otamendi and Di María win for Argentina

With Benfica's Otamendi at full time and Di María stirring up the game from the 62nd minute onwards, when he was brought on by the national coach to break the deadlock, Argentina beat Ecuador by 1-0 on Matchday 1 of the South American qualifying zone for the 2026 World Cup.

A starter for the world champions in the match played in the early hours of Friday, September 8, center-back Otamendi played another full game, with a solid display. In terms of performance, Benfica's captain accumulated 105 actions with the ball, two interceptions, one tackle, one clearance and four duels won. In terms of passing, the Benfica captain was 90% accurate (86 completed out of 96 attempted), according to data from the Sofascore platform.

Di María came on in the 62nd minute and Lionel Scaloni played an important role in breaking down Ecuador's resistance. The goal that won the game for Argentina was scored (by Messi, from a direct free kick) in the 78th minute.

"Electric" on the left side of the attack, but also on the right flank - as described by Olé - the Benfica forward created a big goal-scoring chance, registered 22 actions with the ball, and had a 100 percent pass accuracy (12 out of 12).