The stakes might have been minimal, and the lineups might not have been at completely full strength for both sides, but Argentina showed that there's a different way to defeat Spain other than by playing ultimate defense.
Argentina put on an impressive attacking display, and received some assistance from Spain keeper Pepe Reina in the process, defeating the defending World Cup champions in Buenos Aires, 4-1, in an international friendly Tuesday evening. The loss was only the third for Spain since the 2009 Confederations Cup and was unlike La Furia Roja's previous losses to the United States and Switzerland.
Lionel Messi opened the floodgates in the 10th minute, and Gonzalo Higuain followed with Argentina's second goal three minutes later. Carlos Tevez took advantage of an awful Reina slip-up to make it 3-0 prior to halftime. Fernando Llorente got Spain on the board late in the second half, but Sergio Aguero responded with the final tally at the onset of second-half stoppage time.
For what it's worth, three of the four players that scored for Argentina play for clubs in Spain. Here are highlights of the match:
What did you think of the match? Think Sergio Batista should shed the interim tag and become Argentina's full-on manager?
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