Argentina 4-1 Brazil: Holders mark World Cup qualification in style
Having been sure of their place at next year's World Cup prior to kick-off, Argentina made light work of old foes Brazil.
Argentina celebrated qualifying for the 2026 World Cup by hammering fierce rivals Brazil 4-1 on Tuesday.
Lionel Scaloni’s team, who are the defending world champions, were assured of their place in next year’s tournament prior to taking on the Selecao, with Bolivia having failed to beat Uruguay.
Argentina were without the injured Lionel Messi or Lautaro Martinez, but marked their qualification in style with a dominant display at Estadio Mas Monumental. Goals from Julian Alvarez and Enzo Fernandez helped them take a 2-0 lead inside 12 minutes.
Cristian Romero gifted Brazil a way back into the contest in the 26th minute, with Matheus Cunha taking full advantage.
But Alexis Mac Allister restored Argentina's two-goal cushion with a deft finish on the volley after meeting Fernandez's pinpoint cross.
Substitute Giuliano Simeone added further gloss as he smashed home three minutes after coming on midway through the second half.
Raphinha hit the crossbar for Brazil, who sit in fourth spot in qualifying, 10 points behind Argentina.
La Albiceleste join Japan, Iran and New Zealand in securing qualification for the World Cup, along with co-hosts Mexico, Canada and the United States.
Data Debrief: Doing the double
After a 1-0 win back in November 2023, this is the first time Argentina have won both matches against Brazil in a World Cup qualification campaign. It is also the first time they have beaten the Selecao on home soil since qualification for the 2006 World Cup.
Intriguingly, Scaloni named the same team on Tuesday as he did in the 2022 World Cup semi-final against Croatia, with the exception being Thiago Almada coming in for Messi.
This was a statement win for the reigning world champions, though. They had 12 shots to Brazil's three, with the latter's only attempt on target being Cunha's goal.
Argentina finished with 1.78 expected goals to Brazil's 0.12, further underlining their dominance.