Just to give you a heads-up, Thursday's South American World Cup qualifier was delayed for 30 minutes because of a wet pitch. Argentina eventually drew 1-1 with Venezuela, thanks to a goal from Nicolò Otamendi and an equaliser from veteran Rondon. The weather and state of the pitch in Venezuela were two things that caused some concern ahead of the match.

Argentina is currently leading the 10-team round-robin tournament with 19 points after nine games. Colombia has 16 points and is still in second place after losing 0-1 to Bolivia.

The two results mean that Brazil can no longer automatically qualify for the World Cup. They now have 10 points and are in seventh place. Later on Thursday, Brazil will play Chile in Santiago.

Argentina could lose their lead in Friday's match if Uruguay wins in Peru with 15 points.

Lionel Scaloni may be happy with a single point, given that his team had a tough time on the pitch, which was almost unplayable.

Argentina will be pretty happy with the one-point deficit they left Venezuela with. Argentina was all over the place for a lot of the game, but they managed to tie it up at 1-1 thanks to a goal from Nicolas Otamendi.

The match was delayed for half an hour due to rain, and the waterlogged pitch seemed to suit the home team better. But Argentina still took the lead, even though it was against the run of play, when Otamendi scored from close range 13 minutes in.

Venezuela came close to scoring just before half-time when veteran striker Salomon Rondon's clever volley was blocked by Argentina substitute goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli. Rondon's best moment came in the 65th minute when he dribbled past two defenders and headed the ball past Rulli.

It looked like Lionel Messi was going to score another goal, but his shot was blocked by Rafael Romo towards the end of the match. Head coach Lionel Scaloni switched to a back five soon after and he'll probably be happy with the draw, which means Argentina is in control of its own destiny in the 2026 South American World Cup qualifying.

The top six teams in the round-robin automatically qualify for the 2026 World Cup. Venezuela's next game is in Paraguay on Tuesday, which is the same day Argentina plays Bolivia at home.