The best team in the world are up against the 31st in the 2024 Copa America Group A with Argentina going up against Peru in the final group game.
Argentina face Peru on Matchday 3 of the Copa America with hopes of having already secured a place in the quarterfinal before kickoff.
Argentina are undefeated in 12 matches against Peru with their most recent meeting ending 2-0 during the World Cup qualifiers. Lionel Messi grabbed a brace on the day and they will be looking towards a similar result this time.
Argentina have won the last two international tournaments and they are poised to make it a hat-trick in the United States of America but would have to overcome some tough challenges.
Lionel Scaloni‘s men won 11 of their last 12 matches since lifting the World Cup and that run began with Thiago Almada and Lionel Messi’s late goals deciding a friendly against Panama. The following game against Curacao ended 7-0 in favour of the world champions who closed out the March 2023 international break with very much a party atmosphere.
June brought a pair of 2-0 friendly victories against Australia and Indonesia while they continued the winning run against Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay and Peru. Goals from Ronald Araujo and Darwin Nunez dealt Argentina a 2-nil defeat against Uruguay at La Bombonera.
The White and Sky Blues had to bounce back immediately which they did five days later with a 1-0 victory over Brazil at the Maracana that kept them top of their World Cup qualifying group.
2024 began with a comprehensive 3-0 win over El Salvador in March and Scaloni’s men also hit Costa Rica 3-1 in Los Angeles.
Argentina have the confidence and depth of quality within their ranks to overcome any obstacles that come their way in international tournaments. The 2024 Copa America is seemingly theirs to lose and they are on the verge of history should they clinch another title here.
Peru are on the opposite end of the footballing spectrum so whatever Argentina team takes to the field must defeat their opponents by a comfortable margin.
The White and Red have endured a dismal 2026 World Cup qualification campaign so far with two draws and four defeats as they sit bottom of the group.
The 2023 calendar year started with a defeat to Germany and a goalless draw against Morocco, Bryan Reyna’s goal decided a friendly against South Korea but Peru was thrashed 4-1 by Japan.
The 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign began with a 0-0 draw away to Paraguay but they lost the second home game 1-0 to Brazil. Chile scored two second-half goals to beat Peru on Matchday 3 while Argentina also defeated them by the same scoreline five days later.
Los Incas lost to Bolivia but ended their four-match losing run with a draw against Venezuela in November. Something needed to change after only scoring three goals throughout 2023 and Juan Reynoso was duly replaced by Jorge Fossati as Head Coach.
The Argentine who guided Universitario de Deportes to the Peruvian league title in 2023 has a massive job on his hands to restore some pride in La Blanquirroja.
The two-time Copa America winners have started life brilliantly under Fossati as they beat Nicaragua 2-0 and the Dominican Republic 4-1 in the first international break of 2024.
Copa America kicks off in June and Peru has a chance to rally to a stunning campaign after they reached the final in 2019.
Argentina are the very best team in the world right now and Peru is up against the ultimate challenge here, they must be at their best and hopefully still have something to fight for on matchday 3.
Match tickets
This Copa America showdown is scheduled to take place on Monday, 30 June 2024 with kick-off scheduled for 1 AM UK time. Match tickets are available for sale on the websites of both national federations as well as the Copa America organizers so you can hurry to purchase yours.
Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida is the anticipated venue for this clash and history could be made so fans of both sides would not want to miss it. Match tickets could be scanty to find via the official channels so it is pertinent to have alternatives.
Supporters who are in need of Argentina vs Peru tickets can check for them on a ticket resale site.
Team news
Argentina marksman, Lionel Messi, missed the friendly games in March due to a hamstring injury and he joins Paulo Dybala, Exequiel Palacios and Marcos Senesi on the injured list at the time of writing.
Oliver Sonne and Erick Noreiga received their first caps with the Peru national team in March and they will look to play a role this summer.
Line-ups
There are likely to be several changes to the Argentina lineup should qualification already be secured so a few regular names may be left out.
Competition for spots in the Argentina attack is fierce with Lautaro Martinez competing for a starting place against Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez at the top of the field.
Argentina: Martinez; Acuna, Romero, Otamendi, Montiel; Paredes, Lo Celso, Mac Allister, Fernandez; Di Maria, Martinez
Fossati is favouring a 3-5-2 system in his time with Peru so far and he could well stick to it in order to maintain a disciplined shape and be difficult to break down. Against his home nation, Peru’s head coach will be desperate for a career-defining result.
Starting with a back-three would allow them to be compact while having a direct channel to their dangerous forwards.
Peru: Gallese; Corzo, Abram, Callens; Lopez, Grimaldo, Quispe, Pena, Polo; Lapadula, Guerrero
Prediction
Despite the expected changes, Argentina should beat Peru convincingly and advance to the next round of the competition. The best Peru can hope for is to hold Argentina to a draw on a rare off day due to heavy rotation.
Yet, the Argentines have the firepower and depth to withstand any string resistance and find the win.
Argentina 3-0 Peru
