Argentina defeated Brazil 1-0 on Tuesday in an ill-tempered 2026 World Cup qualifying clash marred by pre-match crowd trouble that forced kick-off to be delayed.

A 63rd-minute header from veteran defender Nicolas Otamendi secured victory for Argentina as the world champions bounced back from last week’s defeat to Uruguay to beat their bitter South American rivals.

The win at Rio’s iconic Maracana Stadium leaves Argentina on top of the South American qualifying standings with 15 points from six games.

Brazil’s third defeat of qualifying, meanwhile, leaves the five-time world champions in sixth place with seven points from six games. 

“This group continues to achieve historic things,” Argentina captain Lionel Messi said afterwards. “Maybe today wasn’t the most important thing, but it was a nice win.”

Read full story on sport.timesofmalta.com

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