Argentina never seemed threatened in their 3-0 friendly win over Jamaica on Tuesday, which was played at a neutral site in the United States’ Red Bull Arena.
Lautaro Martinez was able to worm his way into the box, beating two players to get to the touchline and bring one back at the edge of the six-yard box for a simple tap-in, and Alvarez opened the scoring in the 13th minute.
Argentina created half-chances for the rest of the first half, and it was more of the same to start the second 45, with Martinez going close after a silky one-touch ball from Alexis Mac Allister allowed him space inside the box, but he sent his shot wide of the far post.
Lionel Messi came on in the 56th minute and had his first chance just 10 minutes later when a one-two on the edge of the box allowed him to break into the left side of the box, but his effort from a sharp angle was easily denied at the near post.
But in the 87th minute, Messi picked up a deflected pass just outside the penalty area and struck his left-foot effort hard and low over his body into the bottom-right corner, giving the crowd what they came for.
Argentina was handed a free kick in the identical location two minutes later, and Messi converted once more, this time around the wall into the bottom-left corner.
What does it imply? Argentina is now two games away from making history.
Argentina is now unbeaten in their last 35 games dating back to their loss to Brazil in the 2019 Copa America semi-final.
Italy now owns the record of 37 games without a loss, which they set just last year. Argentina’s next two World Cup games will be against Saudi Arabia and Mexico, and if they survive, they will play Poland for the new record.
Messi is a terrific sub.
Messi topped all players with five shots, four on target, and three successful dribbles despite only playing 35 minutes. Only Alvarez (three chances) created more than Messi’s two, and he scored two goals for the second consecutive international match after scoring twice against Honduras the previous weekend.
Reid is challenged by Argentine physicality.
Bobby Reid had a rough game on the left side, winning only two duels out of 11 attempts, the lowest percentage on the pitch. He also had a passing accuracy of 77%, one of the lowest scores on either team, despite taking no shots and creating no chances.
What comes next?
Argentina will carry its unbeaten record into the World Cup, where they will face Saudi Arabia first. Jamaica will not play again until the CONCACAF Nations League in March.