Argentina nipped a defence-minded Australia side 1-0 to qualify for the knockout stage of the Olympic men's soccer tournament here on Sunday.

Argentina is the first of all sixteen teams to seal a ticket in the last eight with six points from two games. The Olyroos have only a single point after two matches.

"It's a tough game as what we have thought. They used a lot of players in the midfield, and made some good counter attacks to cause trouble for us," said Argentina boss Sergio Batista.

Striker Ezequiel Lavezzi grabbed the winner in the 77th minute with a well-taken volley at the far post after substitute forward Angel Di Maria's cunning cross left him unmarked in the box.

Playmaker Juan Riquelme initiated the move with a sudden wall pass with Lionel Messi in the midfield before sending the ball to Di Maria.

"I'm extremely proud of the game. Of course we lost, but Argentina is the sort of World champions, with players like Messi and Riquelme, they have good chances to defend the title. We have four or five golden chances to score, but the goal didn't happen," said Australia coach Graham Arnold.

"We are still in the tournament, that's the main thing," he added.

The Argentines found it hard to break through a well-organized Australian defence for most of the game, although they dominated the match from the very beginning.

Messi was the most dangerous weapon against the Olyroos, and Sergio Aguero's foray in the eighth minute created space for Messi, but the super star's shot inside the area went high over the bar.

Six minutes later Messi beat three challenges to thrust into the box before firing a small-angel shot to be denied by keeper Adam Federici.

Riquelme also had two great chances in the first period, but his freekick went just a little bit wide before another shot following Aguero's back-heel pass inside the box was blocked by Federici.

The Albiceleste piled on the pressure after the break, and before their efforts were rewarded, Riquelme, Javier Mascherano, and Messi all had chances to score.

The Aussies' best chance came in the 72rd minute, when substitute striker Nikita Rukavytsya burst down the left wing before firing a small angel shot to hit the side net.

Source:Xinhua