Carlos Zambrano gifted Peru a 1-0 lead after 22 minutes of play, but Gonzalo Higuain helped the Argentines to a 1-1 draw with his equaliser only 15 minutes later. "It was a really tight game, and it was more fight than football. Away games like this are always difficult and you have to be strong," Messi stated to reporters. "The pitch did not exactly help either, but I don't want to use that as an excuse. "We would have preferred to bag the full three points, but the most important thing was not to lose. "A draw is a good result as we still sit atop of the table. We will have to win our next game against Uruguay." Argentina have collected 14 points from seven games, and hold a one-point lead over runners-up Colombia.