Qatar and Argentina set for crucial Copa America match

Ahead of the Copa America, not many would have given Qatar a semblance of a chance against Argentina. But after two matches – where Qatar staged a stunning fightback to draw against Paraguay and then went down fighting to Group B favourites Colombia, the Asian Champions have shown they would not be just rolled over.Felix Sanchez’s men have just one point from two matches but are still in contention for a place in the quarter-finals if they can beat Argentina in Porto Alegre tomorrow night. A draw could also see them as one of the two best third-placed teams among three groups to advance to the last eight, provided other results go their way.Against Argentina, Qatar will fancy their chances, with the Lionel Messi-led team struggling to make an impact so far. Argentina too have only one point following a 1-1 draw with Paraguay with Messi’s successful penalty keeping their hopes alive.  Qatar are even ahead of Lionel Scaloni’s team on goal difference. And if Qatar can keep Messi quiet for 90 minutes – difficult but not impossible – then Qatar can eke out a famous win.Against Colombia, Qatar players were resolute, putting on a terrific defensive show and followed the plan laid out by Sanchez to near perfection. But against Messi, they will have to be at their best to deny the genius Argentine from dictating the play. They also will have to counter the threat of prolific forward Sergio Aguero and attacking midfielder Angel Di Maria.Qatar defender Tarek Salman praised his team’s fighting spirit against Colombia. Salman said his team still had a chance to qualify for the next stage provided that they play well against Argentina. “We are proud with our display against Colombia. Hopefully we will do well against Argentina also,” Salman said.“It was a tough match against Colombia. We deserved a draw. We had a lot of chances to score while the Colombians played one of their best matches. When they scored, we didn’t have time to stage a comeback. These are the games you see now and we have to forget this clash now and look to our meeting against Argentina,” he added.Meanwhile, Messi was looking at a glass half full after the stalemate against Paraguay. Five-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi’s 57th-minute penalty cancelled out a first-half opener from Paraguay’s Richard Sanchez on Wednesday night.But Argentina also had goalkeeper Franco Armani – perhaps lucky to still be on the field at that point after denying Derlis Gonzalez a clear goalscoring opportunity in the first half – to thank for saving a second-half penalty.“We have to think positively and keep our confidence,” said Barcelona superstar Messi. “We need to improve and arrive in the best shape possible for the next match ... and we have to win. It would crazy if we couldn’t progress from the group given that there are practically three teams that go through,” said Messi, who will turn 32 on Monday.Defeat at the Minerao stadium in Belo Horizonte would have meant that Argentina could finish no higher than third – Colombia have already won the group after two straight wins. Now they know that victory over invitees Qatar in Porto Alegre tomorrow will likely be enough to see them into the quarters.Argentina have showed few signs of finding the kind of form that took them to three major tournament finals in as many years – all lost – from 2014-16.Argentina had been second best in the first half of their 2-0 defeat by Colombia last Saturday, but then still conceded both goals in a much improved second-half showing. Scaloni dropped Manchester City’s Aguero and Di Maria of Paris Saint-Germain for the Paraguay match but Argentina produced another disjointed and unconvincing display.But Messi insisted that the level of competition is tougher than some appreciate and pointed to Venezuela holding Brazil to a 0-0 draw on Tuesday as proof. “We knew it wasn’t going to be easy playing in a Copa America, we’re searching for a team, for a performance,” said Messi.“Venezuela made it hard for Brazil. At the moment we’re not winning any more in the (Argentina) shirt and we have to put things right to earn the three points against Qatar,” he addedMessi came to Brazil hoping to end a painful run of losing finals with Argentina. Despite winning La Liga 10 times and the Champions League four times with Barcelona, he’s never won a major honour with his country.Three times – 2007, 2015 and 2016 –  he’s lost in a Copa America final and in 2014 Argentina were also defeated by Germany in the World Cup final. But after their first two performances here, the question is not whether they can end their 26-wait for a major title, but simply whether they can avoid taking the first flight home.