In ugly scenes, violence erupted at the sold-out venue during the national anthems, prompting Argentina captain Lionel Messi and his team-mates to walk to the stands to placate sections of the crowd. 

Kick-off was delayed by half-an-hour. 

When play finally got underway, Brazil's disastrous campaign reached crisis point, the Selecao slumping to three straight losses for the first time and dropping into the sixth and final qualifying position on the CONMEBOL standings. 

The win sees the defending World Cup champion lead the standings through six matches of what is a marathon campaign.