Watch: Di Maria scores wonder goal for Argentina against Chile in World Cup qualifying win
Angel Di Maria weaved through Chile defenders before unleashing a wonderful strike to beat goalkeeper Claudio Bravo on Thursday in World Cup qualifying.
The first-half goal opened the scoring for Argentina, who went on to win 2-1 to remain second in the CONMEBOL table.
Di Maria has been asked to step up with Lionel Messi left out of the squad due to his recent bout with Covid.
Watch Di Maria's wonder goal against Chile
That was fast! Early @Argentina goal to make it 1-0!!! #CONMEBOL #CHIvARG pic.twitter.com/Fyw7qFEMQR
— fuboTV (@fuboTV) January 28, 2022
What a hit from Angel Di Maria! 💥
— Premier Sports (@PremierSportsTV) January 28, 2022
A beautiful strike to open the scoring for Argentina against Chile 🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/WVJ7O9PvyN
What else happened in the match?
After Chile's Ben Brereton Diaz headed in an equaliser in the 20th minute, Lautaro Martinez responded for Argentina with a goal in the 34th minute.
The Albiceleste held on to that advantage the rest of the match.
The bigger picture
Di Maria has now scored three international goals since the start of last summer and has earned back his starting spot after briefly being dropped in June.
Along with the likes of Lautaro, Di Maria has helped give Messi a string of strong performances from his supporting cast.
And with Messi back in France during this international break, their contributions are more important than ever.
"When Leo (Messi) is there, everything is always much easier," Di Maria said. "The important thing is to continue working in this way and give more joy to the Argentines."