New Delhi: James Rodriguez led Colombia to a hard-fought 2-1 victory over defending champions Argentina in the South American qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Wednesday morning. Yerson Mosquera opened the scoreline in the 25th minute but Argentina equalised in the 48th minute when Nico Gonzola capitalized on a defensive blunder from the Colombian’s defense.
Skipper Rodriguez’s nerveless spot-kick in the 60th minute sealed a hard-fought win for the Colombian side as they defeated the reigning champions. Jhon Duran missed the golden opportunity of making the scoreline 3-1 when he was found unmarked in the centre of the box but fired straight at goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
Despite the miss, Colombia held on for a vital victory that propelled them to second place in the standings with 16 points from eight games, just two points behind Argentina.
Argentina were without the services of their talisman Lionel Messi due to an injury he picked up in the first clash between the two former World Cup winners since the Copa America final.
Reflecting on the result, Rodriguez said, “It is a great win against an Argentina team that has won it all. The weather was tough, but we had an excellent match. It is a fair win.”
🕺🏼 James Rodriguez with a goal and an assist tonight for Colombia against Argentina ✨🇨🇴
10 goal contributions in last 8 games for Colombia.
vs Paraguay 👟👟
vs Costa Rica 👟
vs Brazil ❌
vs Panama 👟👟⚽️⚽️
vs Uruguay 👟
vs Argentina ❌
vs Perù ❌
vs Argentina 👟⚽️ pic.twitter.com/iQh4w7bPfj
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) September 10, 2024
World Cup champions Argentina lifted the Copa America trophy back in July after a 1-0 overtime victory over Colombia. This result comes as sweet revenge for Colombia and will further uplift their confidence. Colombia remains undefeated in South American World Cup qualifying despite not having defeated Argentina since 2019.
Elsewhere in the qualifiers, Paraguay stunned Brazil 1-0, Bolivia upset Chile 2-1, Ecuador beat Peru 1-0 and Venezuela drew 0-0 with Uruguay.
James Rodriguez’s penalty and assist lead Colombia to a 2-1 win over Argentina in World Cup qualifiers, avenging their Copa America final defeat. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
