Argentina in winning start with Messi show

JOHANNESBURG, (Reuters) – Diego Maradona’s  Argentina dispelled doubts about their World Cup-winning  potential as they put a poor qualifying campaign behind  them to beat Nigeria 1-0 with a brilliant performance from  Lionel Messi yesterday.

Argentina scored early in the Group B game through  defender Gabriel Heinze but a string of saves from Nigeria  goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama made for a nerve wracking ending  as they failed to ram home their superiority.

Messi, showing he can carry Argentina in a way he never  managed in the South American qualifiers, might have scored  four goals but Enyeama saved three first-half efforts and  saw one late in the match skim the outside of a post.

“Today we managed a valued victory but we can no longer  let the rival goal off the way we did today,” Maradona told  the post news conference.

Nigeria’s Swedish coach Lars Lagerback, in charge of  his country when their 1-1 draw sealed Argentina’s fate in  2002, said: “I’m very disappointed about the result.

“Unfortunately there was a mistake from our side … we  stood sleeping on one of the corners (and) that’s what  happens at this level.”

The performance justified Maradona’s decision to field  a three-man attack, with Messi at the centre of most  attacks, cutting in from behind strikers Gonzalo Higuain  and Carlos Tevez although Jonas Gutierrez looked  uncomfortable defending the right flank.

It was the same result as Argentina’s previous World  Cup meeting with Nigeria in Japan in 2002, but Messi’s form  should guarantee there is no repeat of their shock group  stage elimination with South Korea and Greece to come.

HEINZE HEADER

The goal followed a glaring miss by Higuain from  Messi’s left cross and Enyeama’s first save from the little  ace, a chip the keeper did well to tip over for a corner.