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Lionel Messi is still out with the groin injury he's been struggling with, but Argentina have to move on without him. They've got a tough match at hand with a trip to Lima to face Peru, and with CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying rounding the halfway point after this match, they can't afford to drop any points.
Right now Argentina are one point behind Uruguay at the top of the table, thanks in large part to their draw against Venezuela in their last match. They're also just two points away from not being in an automatic qualification spot, a narrow margin that the Albiceleste cannot afford to get on the wrong side of.
That means that despite the difficulty of the occasion, Argentina need their other stars to step up. The trouble is, outside of the Juventus strike pairing of Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala, much of their attack has been struggling for form -- including Angel di Maria, who's playmaking skills will be vital against a defensively tough team like Peru.
This is going to be a tough game, one that neither team will back down from in true CONMEBOL style. So with Peru needing a win in a bad way and Argentina needing a road win in less than ideal circumstances, this has a strong chance of being a fun game, one well worth staying up for. This is a game that means a lot right now, and the more that matches like these mean, the harder the teams will battle on the pitch -- and the more likely it is that we get moments that make you stand up and say "wow."
To watch this match online in the U.S. you can stream it on beIN Sports Connect. In Argentina, it will be on TyC Sports Play, and while it won't be shown online in Peru, you can find other streaming listings for the match on LiveSoccerTV.
TV: beIN Sports (U.S. - English), beIN SPORTS en Español (U.S. - Spanish), TyC Sports, Canal 7 TV Publica (Argentina), Canal Movistar Deportes (Peru)
Match Date/Time: Thursday, 10:15 p.m. ET, 9:15 p.m. local
Venue: Estadio Nacional de Lima, Peru