Bangladesh, June 25 -- Porto Alegre, June 24 (AP/UNB) - Lionel Messi's Argentina escaped an embarrassing group-stage elimination in the Copa America, just like it did in the World Cup a year ago.

But after yet another lackluster performance by Messi and his teammates, expectations remain low for Argentina on its quest to make it to the final and end a 26-year title drought.

"We needed a victory to give us confidence and tranquility," said Messi after the team's 2-0 win over guest Qatar on Sunday. "What I liked the most was the team's attitude, its desire to win the game."

But the victory didn't disguise another disappointing performance that followed an opening loss to Colombia and a draw against Paraguay.

Messi again couldn't come up...