Argentina National Team coach Jorge SAMPAOLI had a lot to say about the Argentina team, from Lionel MESSI to Gonzalo HIGUAIN to much more.
With qualification secured and two friendly matches (supposed to be played) next month, SAMPAOLI has a beat of breathing room. Following the announcement of his latest squad to play Russia and a second team, the coach had this to say:
Jorge SAMPAOLI on Gonzalo HIGUAIN
“HIGUAIN is a player that’s always present. He has nothing to prove. It’ll be up to us to evaluate if HIGUAIN will be at the World Cup or not.
“Making sure that players are able to play with each other is a coach’s job. I don’t see it being that difficult for MESSI and DYBALA to be able to complement each other on the pitch.
Jorge SAMPAOLI on Argentina
“The friendly matches are confirmed. We will play against Russia and we are in advanced talks for the second one. Argentina are in the elite. Germany Spain have the advantage becasue they’ve had the same ideas for years. A coach knows that one day he is insulted and the next he’s not. I am aware of that. I had to complete the goal of a country who’s main priority is football: That was to qualify.
“The list won’t change much from the last one (domestic based list), it’ll be four or five players from the domestic league. If there are players from Boca or River Plate, they will travel after the Superclasico.
Jorge SAMPAOLI on Lionel MESSI
“Leo brings what he always brings: Being the best player in the world. I’ve always had a Leo that was committed, amateur and full of emotions. I’ve been thrilled to see MESSI. Seeing him committed excites us all.
Jorge SAMPAOLI on Sergio AGUERO and others
“AGUERO gives us a chance of a partnership with Leo (MESSI) on the pitch. I also see him as a number 9. Today, we have the chance to pick among the best forwards in the world. The partnerships between players should be a lot.
“The obligation to win is something that has been generated in football. They’ve discarded the idea of losing. We must try to relieve the obligation to win and make the team feel happy.
“These matches will help us evaluate PEROTTI and KRANEVITTER. I see ROJO as a central defender and not as an attacking full back. But for ACUNA I do.
“The AFA President has always been by our side.
“I’ve come for this: To coach Argentina at the World Cup. A World Cup is totally different from the qualifiers. The obligation to win sometimes makes you doubt yourself. Now we have to prepare. We are going to be on top of every player to ensure they reach the World Cup in the best way.
“The World Cup draw brings in a mountain of emotions. It’s very important to see what the group brings you. It’s not the same to play an Italy or an England in the first round.
After the Ecuador game some of Argentina players stated that if they failed to qualify The would hang out their boots or retired from national team. Furthermore I believe they think the qualification is bigger than the three finals lost. Shame on them
This is not a good argument sir what did he do against Real Madrid and Germany come on bro I am so surprised to seee you defend someone like that that means you’re backing up the mediocre players
I hope our exciting midfield players come a long way this season. I was talking about Lo Celso (PSG), Paredes (Zenit) & Battaglia (Sporting).
We need good midfielders to give us balance. Currently we only have players for the final third. The defense is quite ok but without much backup esp for wingbacks. We have a weak midfield which cause disconnection between attack and defense and Messi not getting the ball from positions where he could create a lot of danger.
If I had choose one CM which from I would like to build midfield I’d start from Battaglia. His name is nomen omen because he is really like ‘Battaglia’ (‘combat’ in Italian). Battaglia can play as real box-to-box (with his pace) but as far Sporting coach has been used him as regular No.5, so with defensive tasks mostly.
He is full of energy, strong, tall, combative. Just few months ago unconvincing in Rosario Central. Now doing well against strongest teams of the world (Barca, Juventus). And I think may be only better with the time as he just starts with sporting.
Here’s his performance against Barcelona in CHampions League:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-vlvLIt7rM
I can’t understand he brings back Kranevitter in the squad while we have so many DM. I would try LoCelso instead because he is different or Battaglia from sporting Lisbon.
Lo celso is already in the waiting list. If Battaglia works hard he will have his chance, don’t worry about that. We have a proper coach who selects his team on performance and that is what Tata and Bauza didn’t do.
Yes lo celso is the biggest talent we have since riquelme/aimar/veron generation in midfield
Strengths:
Excellent passing range
Dribbling
Good Technique
Excellent defending & pressing
Weakness:
Finishing
Discipline (too aggressive sometimes & gives up fouls in dangerous areas)
If he can improve on his weaknesses could be an option in NT. PSG is seriously considering 1st team starting position for him this season over pastore/maria. Considering he joined the team 6 months ago & competition he has in PSG, very good progress.
In central midfield IMO we need at least one warrior-like runner/hardworker or (Battaglia, Augusto, Ascacibar) or box to box (Enzo, Nacho, Pereyra, Lanzini) and at least one good passer (Paredes, Lo Celso, Gaston Gimenez). As far Lo Celso is AM rather and I’m not sure any coach will want to use him on more deep position. Rather instead of Banega. I would like to see him on more deep position though. Lanzini as well.
He has a Clear plan in his head,He has a base players which he likes. Whatever doubts we have Dybala – Messi Dilema, Higuain Dilema, Rojo, Mori..He answered it all Sampaoli is a Tactically astute coach we have since Sabella. Great
And whether we like or not he has a base set in his head (Most probably),Unless very bad dip in form or a serious Injury I dont think these Base players will be removed.
Base is:
Messi,Dimaria,Mascherano,Otamendi,Mercado,Fazio,Biglia,Banega,Paredes,Enzo,Dybala,Icardi,Aguero,Romero,Guzman,Acuna.
All the above 16 Players have been set(Be used to these guys or be frustrated at seeing their names or their plays)
The second set is where it becomes interesting, Some are almost surely Locked their positions.for the remaining 7 Places pending.
Salvio,Rigoni,A.Gomez,Beneditto,Lanzini,Mammana,J.Correa,A.Correa,G.Pizarro,Mammana,Marchesin,Rulli,Nacho,Perotti,Kranevitter.
Rojo,Mori,Augusto,(these 3 would have been already played for us under Sampa if not for injuries)
So its better we play around with the above mentioned players in our Formations, 4-4-2, 4-3-3, 3-5-2, 3-4-3, 4-2-3-1, 4-3-2-1 Whatever…Anyway Sampaoli is 100% better tactician than any of us so he will fix our problems.So its a long 8 Months ahead. great.
Comment…nacho and pity Martinez should be called.pity has amazing skills and tricks.
lanzini is best attacking midfielder we have
Insua playing well from Stuttgart…he is a good addition as back up
I think the biggest problem of that squad is Banega. He sometimes gives the ball away im dangerous position and doesn’t help offensively. In my opinion Sampa should consider DiMaria in the midfield alongside with biglia and mascherano. As of right now our central defenders are better and have more height than Masch. Dimaria has better connexion and understanding with Messi.
Banega is a big flop and he won’t help the team win a very big prize like the WC. When he went to Italy for a new challenge he couln’t live up with the expecations and soon turned into a bench warmer. I am not criticizing him for being a flop at Inter (many players have flopped at certain teams and florished at other teams) , but what I really don’t like about his football is how he plays it. He isn’t fast, can’t distribute the ball well, doesn’t have shoot accuracy, and on top of that he always gives the ball away in very dangerous areas. Sampa has already lost confidence in him and the evidence is the game vs Ecuador. Ecuador game was a decisive one and Sampa used the best XI he had in the team to qualify for the WC. Some people don’t like Biglia that much, but Biglia is better than Banega when it comes fulfilling the duties of the role he plays. Banega is very weak and I do really hope some better player will represent Argentina at the WC instead of him.
Totally agree. Banega should make way to youth like Paredes, Pereya (I agree @amit), etc..
add me to the list and ive written it before on here, I’m a big fan of ban but he just is not what we need or more to the point despite many chances is not capable of being the play maker we need for the n/t.
time for him to be gone for good (just like pastore)and on to the next “cab of the rank” to get their chance.
I feel the same way about Banega. Truly speaking, what will Argentina miss if he’s left out of the World Cup? Nothing. Lanzini, Perreyra or Enzo can be more productive in his role.
Pererya had a good match against Chelsea today. Scored a goal & some good run ins on right wing. Hope he builds on this after the 10 month break. Hope he peaks well & fast without any further injuries.
Higuain must be in the team to make sure we don’t win a damn thing. Hail Higu!
Prior to the UCL final, I read somewhere that Higuain never actually scored in any final he played in. #GiantKiller
I can do one better –
Prior to last season’schampions league, he never scored in any knockout rounds in Champions League too.
Last year against Monaco in champions league quarterfinal Heguin scored 2 goal… World Cup quarterfinal against Belgium who scored a goal to win —-?
We don’t only blame to Heguin of his those missed…
“We don’t only blame to Heguin of his those missed”
sometimes a person only gets one audition in life and we have to take it with all we have.
yes we do blame hig as its happened 4 times to him and all in finals incl a pen shootout, he missed them simple as that.
that twat Goetz also had a single shot and guess what he won then a final.
as for the champs lge he has an unimpressive 70 games 19 and 2 in the knock out stages.
oh please learn to spell his name correctly its Higuaín, you defend him enough and have since 2014,you put him in your teams and if its not to much to ask spell it correctly as it really belittles any attempt you have at a debate.
what’s worse is that he somehow finds the best opportunity in the match, spoils it like a cursed man and makes a red face on the camera, which tells u that even Higuain himself knew he was always going to miss.
We can try……
———————Romero——————–
Mascarano——–pezella——-otamendi
Peredes———-Biglia————Acuna
Parotti————Dybala———Maria—
——————Messi———————-
International football fans have high standards. It seems that young Argentine players and players from Argentine local league failed to impress them.
If we lose, our sport reporters and we examine and analyze our team and tactics. It was very funny to know Argentina blame Messi. Argentine Newspaper headlines were weird that ‘It is time for Messi to prove he is Argentine’ and ‘Messi failed again’ even if I know some Argentines hate Messi because he grew up in Barcelona and made his debut in Spain.
Hi, Gonzalo: After losing the 2016 Copa final, you said it is a strong team and will be even stronger if Messi is not included. You argued with other members on the matter that Di Maria defeated Chile in the group stage and Messi was defeated in the final. Your nonsense comment on Messi decreased after the team couldn’t win a game without Messi. But your attitude toward other Mundo people did not improve. I know you love to judge others and express your feeling directly to them. Before talking about somebody else’s faults, you should think about your own. I did not write previous comment to defend the other person; what I mean is that the pot calls the kettle black. You accused a person of posing a bad comment when he had a bad day. See all your posts again and think about yourself. I am sorry to say that you and Gonzalo Higuain have one thing in common.
Argentina could not qualify for the WC without Messi. The competitors keep ahead of Argentina. Messi can’t show his magic in every game for Argentina.
But I hope Argentina will win the 2018 World Cup for football fans all over the world and want Mundo people to have a discussion with respect to each other. The golden rule of debate and discussion is to respect others and find the best answer for the national team together.
Please stay cool and view things objectively. It was a good advice for Argentina that Argentine need to be humble and accept a major title as an underdog.
“International football fans have high standards. It seems that young Argentine players and players from Argentine local league failed to impress them”.
Where from the statement? On what base you judge? What do you know about Argentina local league players or Argentina young players? There’s nothing behind your statement.
J.Correa, A.Correa, RUlli, Pezzella, Mammana, Rigoni, Driussi, De Paul, Acuna, Simeone, Ascacibar, Cervi, Lo Celso, Lanzini, Foyth, Funes Mori, Mercado, Battaglia, Guzman, Marchesin, Alario, Pizarro, Bustos, Benedetto, Stefanelli, Calleri.. – all the players are young players that left local league not long ago and came to Europe not long ago (after last WC) or players from local league/ Mexico that already doing well or at least promising moments in Europe or at least called up by Sampaoli. None of them was part of 2014 NT. Still I’m not including young players like Ocampos, Dybala, Paredes, Icardi – none of them made as far any tournament for Argentina but all are currently shining.
So, what you have said is more than nonsense. You denied facts. Now I really must to say: you know nothing about Argentina players.
“After losing the 2016 Copa final, you said it is a strong team and will be even stronger if Messi is not included” – lie. I said Argentina probably will grow only after Messi retirement but I never said that team was “strong”. Lie. You need to bring my words here.
“You argued with other members on the matter that Di Maria defeated Chile in the group stage and Messi was defeated in the final” – brings my words. I don’t know what you are talking about. Messi had poor final. About Di Maria – I don’t know what you are talking about. Your statemens are clueless and chaotic, without general thought. I said then that Argentina has beaten Chile in group stage without Messi, not Di Maria.
And wait for more our youngster that and will emerge soon. Maybe not all but many of: Cecchini, Rolon, Boye, Poblete, Brian Fernandez, Toledo, Araujo, Vada (actually he already impressed), Colombatto, Jorge Rodriguez, Cartabia, Escalante, Vietto.
Or maybe you want to judge them as weak before waiting for his mature age. The mark what happend with players like Ocampos, De Paul, J.Correa, Paredes and much more- they needed time – after weak years began shine.
this is absolutely true eun,, u know him better than me….. he came with blaaaaaaaaaaa blaaaaa everttime…. some time is good… most time are waste cmts…
, ((Gonzalo: After losing the 2016 Copa final, you said it is a strong team and will be even stronger if Messi is not included. You argued with other members on the matter that Di Maria defeated Chile in the group stage and Messi was defeated in the final. Your nonsense comment on Messi decreased after the team couldn’t win a game without Messi. But your attitude toward other Mundo people did not improve. I know you love to judge others and express your feeling directly to them. Before talking about somebody else’s faults, you should think about your own. I did not write previous comment to defend the other person; what I mean is that the pot calls the kettle black. You accused a person of posing a bad comment when he had a bad day. See all your posts again and think about yourself. I am sorry to say that you and Gonzalo Higuain have one thing in common.
Argentina could not qualify for the WC without Messi. The competitors keep ahead of Argentina. Messi can’t show his magic in every game for Argentina.))
Higuain missed a chance that he created. Missed a tight angle shot and PK against Chile. It happens. He’s still World class with few strikers truly above him. The problem is many of them are Argentine and trying to get on the team. His form has been bad and he’s had some lack luster performances for the NT. If he bounces back to win the scoring title in Seria A he will be on the squad. If he continues to score o goal every 3 games he will not.
Argentina love playing against Nigeria lol
Higuain didnt loose the cups, failed build up of play in midfield was the biggest culprit. Higuain missed 3 chances, which where all the chances he was supplied, some of which he stole the ball himself. He missed, but he is not a fair scalegoat.
Even if that was the case, he shouldn’t be in the team according to form. He is not scoring goals, not assisting…having a bad time etc. etc.
Icardi and Aguero are in better form than him, so they deserve better than Higuain.
the fact is Higuaín chokes in big games. Even at club level , higuain is not effective in big games considering that he is a world class striker. generally he plays better in easier matches & chokes in the real big matches. Also to add Icardi & Aguero are clearly better than him on form now.
Leandro: I know you keep saying the same on hig but even if we take aside his 4 big misses(1 was a pen in a shootout) he simply is not in good enough form at the moment for juv and when exactly was he for Argentina last?
I agree the service has been shite from the mids but he has had chances and he simply does not look like the kind of player that samps requires being fast and Mobil.
on form hig simply does not deserve to be selected a.t.m and the n/t has to and is getting away from picking players on past form and reputation.
Exactly…We are now picking players based on form, and some players with specific need for the system like Di Maria.
Higuain fits none of those categories.
Acuna as an attacking full back again? I thought he usually plays as a winger?
It worked ok against Peru and Ecuador, but can we still do this against big teams?
Sounds like Diego playing Otamendi as the right back to me.
On the other hand, Mussachio deserves a callup, i prefer a Mussachio-Otamendi partnership in the central defense.
i think sampaoli will again go back to 3-5-2 & Acuna will be a wingback & not fullback.
Acuna started his career as a LB, then moved to LW. So the position LWB is not much much unfamiliar to him. Sampoli is trying to have an Alba in him and he’s not a mismatch.
14 November vs Nigeria
💪🏾💪🏾😌❣️
A much relaxed looking Sampoali……..
Higuian has nothing to prove! I BEG TO DIFFER…THAT C sucker lost us and I’ll be more than fair, TWO cups.
Sampoali sees no issue with Dybala and Messi playing together……Great news, Now make it Happen.
encouraging words
In Sampaoli I trust….With some Luck Argentina will do well in 2018 WC
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