BUENOS AIRES: Without the injured Lionel Messi and the retired Ángel Di María, Argentina cruised past Chile 3-0 to remain top of the South American 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Alexis Mac Allister opened the scoring in the 48th minute, Julián Álvarez added a goal in the 84th, and Paulo Dybala capped the scoring in the 90th for the Argentinians, who have 18 points after the first seven rounds.
The top six teams in the South American standings will qualify for the World Cup, which will be played in the United States, Mexico, and Canada in 2026. The team that finishes seventh will advance to a play-off against another confederation.
After winning the Copa América in the United States, Argentina overcame the absence of the 37-year-old Messi, who suffered a right ankle injury in the final against Colombia. His future playing status remains uncertain.
Di María, who has retired from the national team, was honoured by fans and teammates before the match at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. The 37-year-old Di María played his last match for Argentina in the 1-0 win over Colombia in the Copa América final. He was a national team member for Argentina for 16 years.
The team later paraded its Copa América trophy around the stadium.
Earlier, Bolivia took advantage of the high altitude at its new host city and defeated Venezuela 4-0 to record its second win in four home matches. Ramiro Vaca opened the scoring in the 13th minute, Carmelo Algarañaz converted a penalty in the 45th, Miguel Terceros added another in the 46th, and Enzo Monteiro scored in the 89th.
The Bolivians used to play in the capital, La Paz, at 3,640 metres (11,940 feet) above sea level, but the South American football body CONMEBOL allowed them to move their games to El Alto, the second-largest city in the country, at an altitude of 4,150 metres (13,615 feet).