Argentina began their quest to defend the Copa America title with a win over Canada in the opening match, MySportDab reports.
It was a tricky affair for the Albiceleste as Canada put up a more impressive performance than expected.
A strongly contested first half saw both sides unable to draw the first blood. Argentina did a better job than their opponents in terms of possession but struggled to create any meaningful chance.
Canada struck a balance between good defensive and attacking play and contested for the ball strongly throughout the first half which ended barren.
In the second half, Argentina finally got the better of the hard-fighting opponents. Manchester City forward Julian Alvarez opened the scoring for the world champions four minutes into the second half, thanks to an assist by Liverpool midfielder Mac Allister.
Canada stepped up proceedings after going a goal down but could not make anything happen. Meanwhile, Argentina continued to dominate proceedings and were threatening when on the offensive.
Two minutes before regulation time, Inter Milan forward Lautaro Martinez sealed the victory for the Albiceleste, latching on an assist by Lionel Messi to double the lead [WATCH HIGHLIGHTS HERE]
At this point, it was a game over for the Canadians with a few minutes left to play.
The game finally ended with Argentina winning 2-0 to open their campaign with a win.
The win has seen the star-studded side top Group A with 3 points. They will be hoping to continue on winning ways in their next group matches against Peru and Chile.
