Argentina and Qatar face each other at Arena do Gremio on Sunday with both teams level on one point at the bottom of Group B.
The 14-time Copa America winners Argentina are in real danger of being eliminated at the group stage and must beat Qatar to secure a spot in the late eight.
They lost 2-0 to Colombia in their opening match and most recently drew with Paraguay; failing to justify their label as one of the pre-tournament favorites.
In their last match, Paraguay took the lead in the first half through Richard Sanchez. Lionel Messi salvaged a point with a 57th minute penalty after VAR spotted a handball in the box.
Paraguay managed more attempts on goal throughout the game and could have won it in the second half. Argentina goalkeeper Franco Armani saved Derlis Gonzalez’s penalty to keep the score at 1-1.
🏆 @CopaAmerica⚽ @Argentina 🇦🇷 1 (Lionel Messi) - #Paraguay 🇵🇾 1 (Richard Sánchez)Final del partido en Belo Horizonte. pic.twitter.com/1suTxQhLjM— Selección Argentina 🇦🇷 (@Argentina) June 20, 2019
🏆 @CopaAmerica⚽ @Argentina 🇦🇷 1 (Lionel Messi) - #Paraguay 🇵🇾 1 (Richard Sánchez)Final del partido en Belo Horizonte. pic.twitter.com/1suTxQhLjM
It was another below par performance from Argentina and they must drastically improve if they are to progress further in the competition.
On the other hand, guest nation Qatar will be extremely satisfied with their start to the tournament. They claimed a point against Paraguay in their first game and only narrowly lost to Colombia in their last match.
They defended brilliantly against Colombia but couldn’t hold on for a point. Atalanta striker Duvan Zapata scored in the 86th minute to snatch the draw from Qatar.
Four of their players received a yellow card against Colombia and the same amount were booked in the match with Paraguay. This means Qatar have the worst disciplinary record of all the teams in the competition.
Qatar were not expected to cause any real trouble at the 2019 Copa America. Remarkably, they sit above Argentina on goal difference with just one group match left to play.
Argentina were seen as favorites to top Group B but find themselves rock bottom and in desperate need of all three points from their final group game.
The two teams have only ever met once before. Argentina beat Qatar 3-0 in a friendly match in 2005 and will need a similar result this time around.
Despite their dismal start to the tournament, Argentina should be too strong for Qatar are likely to claim a straight forward victory on Sunday.