Argentina vs. Uruguay: Lionel Messi Reveals Reason for World Cup Qualifier Loss

Argentina began their World Cup defense campaign on the wrong foot as they lost a World Cup qualifier at home in Buenos Aires against Uruguay.

Lionel Messi was praising their opponents after the match.

The 8-time Ballon d'Or winner and current World Cup champion spoke at a press conference after losing to Uruguay 0-2 at home. "We never felt comfortable," said the soccer legend. "The loss is a good test for us. They are an intense team and it was difficult for us to play our game."

"They have physical and fast players in the midfield. We didn't find a way to possess the ball for a long period of time," added Messi, whose team won the World Cup in Qatar for Argentina for the third time back in 2022.

As the BBC pointed out, this was the first time Argentina lost a match since the 2022 World Cup opening match against Saudi Arabia where the eventual winners lost in what may have been the biggest upset in the tournament. The Argentinians have since been on a tear, winning 14 straight matches, including that historic World Cup final against France, meaning Uruguay just snapped their 14-game winning streak.

Messi continued praising Uruguay, which appointed Argentinian coach Marcelo Bielsa as head coach back in May. He coaches Leeds in the English Premier League.

"You can see Bielsa's hand on the way Uruguay is playing," he continued. "In all the national teams or clubs, including Argentina, his style was very recognizable. And he has a good generation of players."

Even with the loss to Uruguay, Argentina is still on top of the South American World Cup Qualifiers standings after winning all four matches. Meanwhile, Uruguay is now in second place after beating the World Cup champions on their home turf.

Ronald Araujo and Darwin Nuñez Lead Uruguay to Victory Vs. Argentina

Luis Suarez used to be the face of Uruguay soccer, but in this match against the reigning World Cup champions, it was Ronald Araujo and Darwin Nuñez who led the first-ever World Cup champions to victory.

According to USA Today, Araujo scored the first goal of the match during the 41st minute, while the second goal was scored by Nuñez during the 86th minute. Araujo's goal broke Argentinian goalkeeper Martínez's impressive shutout streak of 751 minutes.

Argentina Was Pressured by Uruguay Throughout the Match

With an Argentinian coach, Uruguay knew how to press the World Cup champions' buttons as Bielsa's side pressed Argentina throughout the match and stifled the legendary offense that won the most prestigious trophy in soccer.

According to AS, Uruguay's game plan went surprisingly well, as Bielsa had his players not stop running and surround every Argentinian player at once during all 95 minutes of the match. This forced their opponents to employ some changes but it was too late as Uruguay pulled away late in the game thanks to the Darwin Nuñez goal.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Highlights Argentina vs Uruguay 0-2 Today Match Qualifier World Cup 2026 All Goals 2023 - EFN Official