Copa America: Emi Martinez’s impressive performance in the shootout saves Lionel Messi from embarrassment as Argentina narrowly advances to the semi-finals.

Lionel Messi’s penalty miss was overshadowed by the heroics of goalkeeper Emi Martinez as Argentina scraped through to the Copa America semi-finals. The team managed a 1-1 draw against Ecuador at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, with Lisandro Martinez opening the scoring in the 35th minute. However, Kevin Rodriguez’s last-minute equalizer forced the match into extra time.

Even after an additional half-hour, the deadlock couldn’t be broken, leading to a nerve-wracking penalty shootout. Surprisingly, Ecuador’s manager, Felix Sanchez, was relieved of his duties immediately after the match.

Messi was the first to step up for Argentina, but his shot hit the crossbar. Fortunately, Martinez came to the rescue by saving Angel Mena’s penalty. Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez then put Argentina ahead in the shootout, with Martinez making another impressive save to deny Alan Minda. Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister converted his spot-kick to double Argentina’s lead, but Martinez was finally beaten by John Yeboah. Gonzalo Montiel scored Argentina’s third penalty, while Jordy Caicedo kept Ecuador in the game.

Former Manchester City defender Nicolas Otamendi had the chance to secure Argentina’s place in the semi-finals, and he did so by calmly slotting the ball into the bottom left corner. A relieved Lionel Scaloni praised his team’s trust in Martinez’s goalkeeping abilities, highlighting the importance of his saves. Scaloni also emphasized the collective performance of the team, rather than focusing on individual talent like Messi’s missed penalty.

On the other side, Sanchez, the Ecuador manager, expressed his satisfaction with his team’s performance, despite the result. He praised their competitiveness and determination to bring joy to the fans.

Messi, in his post-match interview, expressed his disappointment that the game had to go to penalties against a tough opponent like Ecuador. He acknowledged the difficulty of the match and the unpredictable nature of the Copa America.

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