Argentina beat Nigeria 3-1 to avenge June's defeat

Chinedu Ogbuke Obasi came on as a substitute to score Nigeria's only goal

Argentina gained revenge for their June loss to Nigeria by defeating the Super Eagles 3-1 in Bangladesh on Tuesday.

Before a sell-out crowd at the 25,000-capacity Bangabandhu Stadium in Dhaka, Gonzalo Higuain opened the scoring for the South Americans after 24 minutes.

Moments later, his Real Madrid team-mate Angel di Maria doubled the lead.

Although Chinedu Obuasi Ogbuke reduced arrears a minute after the break, an own goal from Uwa Echiejile after 65 minutes wrapped up the win.

We shut Messi down in the second half, but he made the difference in the game tonight

Unlike the game in June, when Argentina fielded a second-string side experimenting for the Copa America, the South Americans fielded a strong team.

Barcelona's Lionel Messi was the standout star, creating two of the goals, with Javier Mascherano and defensive duo Pablo Zabaleta and Nicolas Burdisso also in attendance.

Meanwhile, Nigeria coach Samson Siasia made changes to the side that beat Madagascar 2-0 in a 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on Sunday.

But he was still impressed with the way his team performed following their arduous journey to Bangladesh just hours after their Antananarivo clash.

"I'm very proud of my players. We are all tired after the long journey, but there are no excuses," Siasia said after the match.

"We shut Messi down in the second half, but he made the difference in the game tonight."

The Super Eagles were without captain Joseph Yobo, who was in Turkey to complete his Fenerbahce move, and Victor Anichebe, who was injured in Antananarivo.

Instead, several fringe players were given a chance - as Brown Ideye and Solomon Okoworonkwo made their first starts under Siasia - while Ahmed Musa, Ikechukwu Uche, Chinedu Obasi were benched.

Nigeria started slowly against a highly-spirited Argentina, with Messi dictating the pace of the game - feeding Higuain for the South Americans' opening goal with an exquisite pass.

Two minutes later, he dispossessed John Obi Mikel on the halfway line, beat three defenders on a slaloming run and although Aiyenugba stopped his shot, Di Maria tapped the rebound into an empty net.

Mikel, the Nigeria captain, made amends when pulling the ball back from the byline for substitute Chinedu Obasi to shoot high into the net just after the break.

The Super Eagles did have further chances, but Obinna Nsofor, Uche, Ideye and Musa all spurned decent opportunities.