COCHABAMBA (BOLIVIA), June 18: Argentina reached the quarter-finals of the Copa America by the skin of their teeth here yesterday, going through as the second-placed team in Group A following a 1-1 draw with Paraguay.

In an incident-packed encounter, Daniel Passarella's men were on the verge of conceding second place to the Paraguayans before Marcelo Gallardo converted a last-gasp penalty to snatch a point.

Paraguayan goalkeeper Jose Luis Chilavert had opened the scoring, also from the penalty spot, in the 75th minute.

The stalemate meant that surprise package Ecuador, who earlier beat Chile 2-1, topped the group with seven points from their three matches to Argentina's five.

Ariel Graziani, who scored in Saturday's win over Paraguay, set the Ecuadoreans on their way with a goal after 33 minutes.

And although Fernando Vergara equalised just after the break, Jos Gavica promptly netted what ultimately proved to be the winner after 56 minutes.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.