By JOEY SAMUEL

When Argentina opened its campaign to qualify for the 2014 World Cup with a commanding 4-1 win over Chile, things looked to be back on track for the Albiceleste after a disastrous 2011 Copa America.

But only two games later, that optimism has completely faded away.

Iniesta returns from injury to face Racing Santander (Photo: JOSEP LAGO/AFP/Getty Images)

Andres Iniesta has recuperated from his injury and will act as the anti-FIFA Virus in Saturday's home clash against Racing Santander. The Spanish international was out for three weeks following a hamstring pull, but it looks like Guardiola will be ready to start him after having trained regularly for the past week.

As focus shifted to major international matches taking place this weekend, it was a different scenario in South America as the continent began the tedious qualification process for the Brazil 2014 World Cup finals.

Both Argentina and Uruguay won convincingly with La Albiceleste beating Chile 4-1 at home while Uruguay settled for a 4-2 win over Bolivia in Montevideo.

By JOEY SAMUEL

Last summer, Uruguay shocked the world by advancing all the way to the semifinals of the 2010 World Cup. On Friday, they started their path to the next World Cup in style.

Uruguay, which also won the 2011 Copa America this summer, opened their 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign in CONMEBOL with a 4-2 win over Bolivia.

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Did you know that the 2014 World Cup qualifying rounds have already started? With 'only' just under a thousand days until the big kick-off in Brazil, we take a look at one of the most hotly-contested qualifying groups: South America.

Balls Out for the UEFA Champions League

Tues 13 September 2011

Group E:

Chelsea-Leverkusen (Stadium: Stamford Bridge, London): The Blues should win at home, despite not being quite settled: seems like they're still adjusting to new manager Andre Villas-Boas, the Fernando Torres situation is still unclear, especially after AVB sat him for the entire match over the weekend; and it's same old guys at the core of the squad (Frank Lampard, John Terry, Ashley Cole).

Argentina disposed of Nigeria 3-1 in Bangladesh on Tuesday. Among the highlights was a certain Lionel Messi robbing a certain John Obi Mikel at midfield, and turning said theft into a supreme goal for the La Albiceleste (via Angel Di Maria).

It's all good, John. We still love you.

Nicholas Otamendi might have gotten Argentina the win with the match's only goal. But it was Leo Messi all the way and by some distance. He whipped in the corner that led to the centre back's first goal for the Albiceleste. This was Alejandro Sabella's debut and he must have been glad the little maestro was at hand to pull the strings.

So... it transpires that England weren't rubbish after all, just in an impossibly difficult group. Mexico sit proudly in the Under-20s World Cup semi-final line-up and Argentina should have been alongside them. The apologies of a nation are due to Brian Eastick and his team. Details of Mexico's elimination of tournament hosts Colombia were impossible to find without possession of Eurosport HD among your package of cable channels, as the match was the only one not to feature on ‘ordinary' British Eurosport.

By FRANCO PANIZO

The U.S. men's national team isn't the only one introducing a new head coach to its fan base.

Argentina has appointed Alejandro Sabella as manager of the Albiceleste. Sabella replaces Sergio Batista, who was let go earlier this week after leading Argentina to a disappointing and early exit at the Copa America it hosted earlier this month.

Alejandro Sabella could be the new coach of the Albiceleste

The AFA is meeting on Monday to decide the fate of the embattled Sergio Batista under whom Argentina suffered a humiliatingly early exit in the Copa America. The general manager Carlos Bilardo seems to have lost faith in him and in a blow Batista's biggest cheerleader, the AFA president Julio Grondona also appears inclined towards a change at the helm.

Once again an Argentine squad packed with some of the best attacking talent in the world underachieved falling to a Uruguayan side in the Copa America quarterfinals. After 120 minutes, the teams battled to a 1-1 draw with both teams missing a number of chances.

Carlos Tevez, who's been the news for a strongly rumoured return to Corinthians could not put away his PK as the baby faced Fernando Muslera saved his effort.

Sat 16th July
A) Colombia v Peru 16:00
B) Argentina v Uruguay 19:15
Sun 17th July
C) Brazil v Paraguay 16:00
D) Chile v Venezuela 19:15
Semi-finals: 19th July A v B, 20th July C v D;
Final: 24th July
It's still all set for a traditional Brazil v Argentina final on the 24th of July but Argentina's ropey form in their first two games means the hosts' passage to Buenos Aires is less than certain.

The 2011 Copa America has completed its group stage and one thing that can be said so far about the tournament is that it hasn't all been plain sailing for the tournament hosts Argentina and favourites Brazil. Countries such as Venezuela and Colombia have impressed from the off whilst the likes of Uruguay and Paraguay have qualified for the knockout rounds despite not performing as well as most people expected.

ARGENTINA vs COSTA RICA

Ganar como sea, y ganó Argentina. Un triunfo que huele a drama, a sinsabor, pero que sabe solo lo justo para una afición que quiere ver ganar a su selección, pues no gana nada desde la copa de 1993 en Ecuador. Hoy aparecieron Agüero, Di Maria, Higuain y Gago, con esto el equipo cambió, y aunque Costa Rica, como se preveía, no fue rival, Argentina hizo lo que tenía que hacer y resolvió el partido desde el primer tiempo pues los ticos no iban a anotarle nunca a la albiceleste, no solo porque es una selección sub 22, sino porque no tienen con que.

Hosts Argentina qualified for the quarter-finals of Copa America 2011 following their 3-0 Group A win over invitees Costa Rica on Monday night. El Albiceleste's first win of the South American championship sees them finish second in Group A on five points. Colombia tops the group with seven. Argentina's goals against a young, experimental Costa Rican [.

Hosts Argentina qualified for the quarter-finals of Copa America 2011 following their 3-0 Group A win over invitees Costa Rica on Monday night. El Albiceleste's first win of the South American championship sees them finish second in Group A on five points. Colombia tops the group with seven. Argentina's goals against a young, experimental Costa Rican [.

By FRANCO PANIZO

It took longer than expected, but Argentina finally had a reason to celebrate.

Argentina recorded its first win of the Copa America, topping Costa Rica, 3-0, on Monday night in the final match of Group A. The victory advanced the albiceleste to the quarterfinals as it finished in second place of the group with five points.

COPA AMERICA 2011: Argentina 3:0 Costa Rica
They had to win to survive, but in the end Argentina qualified comfortably for the last eight of the Copa America with a 3:0 thrashing of Costa Rica in Cordoba.
Fears of a humiliating elimination proved unfounded; The Albiceleste never broke a sweat and at with a static Costa Rican defence and a game which was played at almost walking pace at times, the meeting between the hosts and the guests had the whiff of a friendly.

Bolivia became the first nation to be eliminated from the 2011 Copa America, going down 0-2 to Colombia in Santa Fe.
It was Chelsea target Falcao who scored both goals for Los Cafeteros, the first having sprung the Bolivian offside trap high up the field in the 14th minute, and the second a penalty just short of the half hour.

Copa America 2011
Argentina 0:0 Colombia
The host nation has embarked on a round of navel-gazing following a second successive draw in the Copa America.
On a foggy night in Santa Fe, Argentina, despite boasting the likes of Lionel Messi and Carlos Tevez in their lineup, failed to catch fire and stumbled listlessly to a goalless finish with Colombia.

By Chris Wright

Things aren't looking particularly promising for Argentina at the Copa America after registering their second-straight underwhelming draw against Colombia last night, with Lionel Messi's dire free-kick just about summing up the Albiceleste's tournament so far.

It was not supposed to be this way. Argentina with Lionel Messi and Carlos tevez were supposed top restore pride to Argentina football by winning the Copa America at home. Instead they are in danger of not even reaching the quarter-finals after being held to a 0-0 draw by Colombia.

Argentina were simply poor against Columbia and could easily have lost if Dayro Moreno not missed a sitter after on 25 minutes, with the goal at his mercy following a mix-up in the Argentinian defence.

A worried Checho Batista faced with a must win against Costa Rica

Watching Leo Messi, a shadow of himself struggle against Colombia throws into sharp relief the magnificent Barca midfield that makes goalscoring look so easy. The Albiceleste should on first look fare just as well with their squad teaming with the creative talent the likes of Ezequiel Lavezzi, Ever Banega, Javier Pastore, Fernando Gago, Esteban Cambiasso, and Angel Di Maria.

Copa America 2011: Argentina continue to stutter and what is wrong with Messi? is a post from: Just Football

So it seems that, in Argentina, even the wind can tackle Messi. Sure, the Barcelona phenomenon may have banged in over 50 goals in all competitions during the domestic season. But in the company of his fellow compatriots the poor guy just cannot catch a break.

Coppa America: Il punto dopo la Prima Giornata Gruppo A Di Simone Melis Argentina-Bolivia 1-148' Edivaldo, 75' Aguero E' una Copa America che riserva tante sorprese quella che si sta svolgendo in questi giorni in Argentina. Proprio la nazionale albiceleste è stata bloccata sull'1-1 dalla Bolivia. Argentina che parte col 4-3-3.

Por Maxi Bibbo / @maxi_balcarce
El 1-1 con Bolivia en el partido inaugural de la Copa América 2011 dejó sabor a poco y mucha incertidumbre del lado local. Pero la historia del torneo tiene una jugada más cruel aún para este momento: es la sexta igualdad que el conjunto celeste y blanco consigue en su debut en el torneo continental.

The opening match of the 2011 Copa America wasn't the spectacle we were hoping for. On a cold night in La Plata, with the pitch not in perfect condition, Argentina battled Bolivia to a 1-1 draw. But perhaps the most interesting aspect of the opening match were the goals that were scored.

By FRANCO PANIZO

It may have been a draw, but it probably felt like a loss for Argentina.

Argentina kicked off the 43rd edition of the Copa America in unconvincing fashion at home on Friday night, needing a spectacular finish from substitute Sergio Aguero to tie Bolivia, 1-1.

It's Copa America time again, with hosts Argentina kicking-off in La Plata against Bolivia at 20:45 EST.Brazil are seeking a hat-trick of Copas, having beaten La Albiceleste in the final of 2004 and again, devsatatingly, in 2007:Argentina will be hoping that Buenos Aires' Estadio Monumental will host a happier occasion on July 24th than last Sunday's relegation for River Plate and ensuing

The Copa America 2011 squad for tournaments hosts and favorites Argentina was named by manager Sergio Batista on Saturday. The 23-man roster includes reigning FIFA World Player of the Year Lionel Messi along with a host of European-based stars that includes Carlos Tevez, Gonzalo Higuain and Javier Mascherano.

Lionel Messi and Carlos Tevez scored a goal apiece as a star-studded Argentina defeated modest Albania 4-0 on Monday evening at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. Messi also added two assists in a Man of the Match Performance. The match was the last warm-up for Argentina before it hosts Copa America 2011 in July.

Poland vs Argentina 2011 Score:- Poland 2-1 Argentina ( Adrian Mierzejewski, Pawel Brozek/ Marco Ruben) June 5, 2011- International Soccer Friendly- Warsaw, Poland 5/6/2011 After a 4-1 loss to Nigeria, a weakened Argentina side slump to their second straight loss in international competitions as Poland beat them 2-1.

So I'm taking this chance to get a post out before my internet breaks again (this is the first time in a bit I've had any.)

I took the opportunity to watch Tino play his (correct me if I'm wrong) first Argentina game against Nigeria in Abuja mid-week. The line-up fielded by Los Albiceleste was largely second-string, as most of the first teamers were rested with the Copa America in mind.

Nigeria vs Argentina 2011 ( Super Eagles vs Albiceleste) Score:- Nigeria vs Argentina 4-1 ( Ikechukwu Uche*2, Victor Obinna, Emmanuel Emenike/ Mauro Boselli) 1 June 2011- International friendly Nigeria rout Argentina 4-1 to record their first major victory in international competitions at senior level over the Albiceleste.

- Maxi Rodriguez

It was 2:30 in the afternoon and I was crying.

Mind you, not like the dignified "Crying Indian" who sheds a single tear, or the stereotypical strong-men of old westerns who cleared their throats and sniffled with a quiet poise.

Mentre non basta un Cambiasso super (e in goal), all'Argentina, per domare gli Usa, bravi a raggiungere il pari contro l'Albiceleste grazie alla firma di Agudelo (attaccante colombiano naturalizzato statunitense dei New York Red Bulls), lo show del fuoriclasse del Manchester United, "Chicharito" Hernandez, spiana la strada al successo del Messico, con il risultato di [.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (March 26, 2011) – The U.S. Men's National Team came from a goal down to earn a 1-1 draw with Argentina in front of a record crowd of 78,936 fans at New Meadowlands Stadium on Saturday. Forward Juan Agudelo's second-half strike from close range and goalkeeper Tim Howard's Budweiser Man of the Match performance secured the result for the United States, whose record against Argentina now stands at 2-6-2.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (March 26, 2011) – The U.S. Men's National Team came from a goal down to earn a 1-1 draw with Argentina in front of a record crowd of 78,936 fans at New Meadowlands Stadium on Saturday. Forward Juan Agudelo's second-half strike from close range and goalkeeper Tim Howard's Budweiser Man of the Match performance secured the result for the United States, whose record against Argentina now stands at 2-6-2.

photo by Howard C. Smith/ISIphotos.com

By FRANCO PANIZO

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Less than a day after earning a 1-1 draw with Argentina, the U.S. men's national team arrived in the Music City to prepare for its second-to-last friendly before the 2011 Gold Cup.