Argentina's national team secured a 2-1 victory over Mauritania in a friendly match at La Bombonera on Friday night, but coach Lionel Scaloni stressed the need for much better performances ahead of the World Cup. Goals from Enzo Fernandez and Nicolas Paz gave the world champions the win, despite a lackluster display. Lionel Messi came off the bench to a hero's welcome amid calls for him to continue his international career.
Argentina defeated Mauritania 2-1 in an international friendly at La Bombonera on Friday evening, though the world champions struggled to dominate their lower-ranked opponents. Enzo Fernandez opened the scoring in the 17th minute, heading in a cross from Nahuel Molina. Nicolas Paz doubled the lead eight minutes later with a left-footed free kick that evaded the defensive wall and goalkeeper Babacar Diop in the 32nd minute. Mauritania pulled one back later, but Argentina held on despite making several substitutions that failed to inject fluency into their play. Lionel Messi, starting on the bench, entered in the second half to thunderous applause from the crowd, who displayed banners encouraging him to pursue a sixth World Cup appearance. Messi nearly scored in the 55th minute, but Diop denied his long-range effort. Head coach Lionel Scaloni was candid in his assessment post-match. “The team didn’t play a good match. We have to say that so we can work on improving,” Scaloni said. He added, “We evidently can play much better; we’ve done it. All the guys we’ve been able to see have contributed their part, but when a match becomes complicated, it’s harder.” Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez echoed the sentiment, calling it “one of the worst friendlies we’ve played. We lacked intensity, game and speed. It’s something we need to analyze and every time we wear the jersey do a little bit better.” Martinez also noted relief over the cancellation of a planned Finalissima against Spain, saying, “Thank goodness [the Finalissima wasn’t played], if we had played like this we would’ve lost.” The fixture change came after Spain pulled out, prompting the late reshuffle to face Mauritania.
