Even though Lionel Messi hit the post twice after coming off the bench and having a tough game after coming back from injury, Argentina beat Paraguay 1-0 on Thursday in a South American World Cup qualifying match.

The winners of the World Cup won their third game in a row in the round-robin tournament.

After a corner kick in the third minute, Nicolás Otamendi scored the only goal of the game. He was unmarked in the penalty box. A defender hit the ball with his left foot and it went into the net.

Messi, who is 36 years old, has been hurting his right leg muscles, which has kept him out of a few games for his club, Inter Miami. Nico Gonzalez was chosen by coach Lionel Scaloni to take his place. In the 52nd minute, when Argentina already had the lead, the star took Julián Álvarez off the field.

Messi missed the post with a corner kick 10 minutes after he took the field at the Monumental de Nuñez Stadium in Buenos Aires. His other attempts to move and pass deep also didn’t work.

Just before the end of the game, Messi took a free kick from the same spot where he scored the game-winning goal against Ecuador in September. The shot hit the right post, giving Argentina fans hope.

Because Argentina’s leader wasn’t there for the first half, Scaloni put Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez together up front for the game.

When Paraguay’s new coach Daniel Garnero took over, his first game was against Argentina. His team didn’t show much offensive power. After the first two qualifiers last month, the 54-year-old boss took over from Guillermo Barros Schelotto.

Messi missed the U.S. Open Cup final and four MLS games for his team. They lost 1-0 to Cincinnati on Saturday, and he played for 10 minutes. A 3-0 win over Bolivia in a World Cup qualifying game in September was another game he didn’t play in.

They are both in South American World Cup qualifiers. Argentina has nine points and Paraguay has one.

The United States, Mexico, and Canada will host the next World Cup, which will have 48 teams. This means that the top six teams in South America will have straight entry. For a spot, the seventh-place team will play in an international playoff.

Thursday morning, Colombia and Uruguay tied 2-2. In the 37th minute, veteran James Rodríguez scored the first goal for the home team. Just before halftime, Matias Oliveira tied the game.

The Columbians went ahead again in the 52nd minute thanks to Mateus Uribe. Just before the end of the game, Camilo Vargas was sent off for a hit on Darwin Núñez, who scored an equalizer from the penalty spot for Uruguay.

Uruguay has four points and Colombia has five after three wins.

Ecuador beat Bolivia 2-1 in La Paz, with a goal scored in the last few seconds of the game.

The guests’ goal came from Kendry Paéz just before halftime, and Rodrigo Ramallo tied the game in the 83rd minute. Brazil’s first three points came from Kevin Rodriguez.

At the end of the day on Thursday, if Brazil beats Venezuela, they could tie Argentina for first place behind them. Peru and Chile will also play.