Argentina XI vs. Chile at Copa America, 4-3-3, Lionel Messi leads attack

By
Roy Nemer
-
227

Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni will be fielding a 4-3-3 in the opening match of the Copa America.

Lionel Scaloni has went with Nicolas Tagliafico on the left in place of Marcos Acuna, with the rest of the squad being what was rumored. Emiliano Martinez gets the start in place of Franco Armani and it’s a four man back line.

Gonzalo Montiel on the right, Lucas Martinez Quarta in for Cristian Romero who is not fit, Nicolas Otamendi partners him with Tagliafico. In midfield, it’s the trip of Paredes, De Paul and Lo Celso.

Messi will lead the attack alongside Lautaro Martinez and Nicolas Gonzalez. Here is the starting XI:

Emiliano Martinez; Gonzalo Montiel, Lucas Martinez Quarta, Nicolas Otamendi, Nicolas Tagliafico; Rodrigo De Paul, Leandro Paredes, Gio Lo Celso; Lionel Messi, Lautaro Martinez, Nicolas Gonzalez

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227 Comments

  2. Idk why I even keep coming on here. It’s just mostly ignorant people talking about why they do not understand. It’s all uneducated opinions.

  3. Positive:

    Messi
    LoCelso
    Emi
    Otamendi
    Tagliafico
    Correa and DiMaria tried…at the end.

    I don’t think this team is a joke. This team can improve game by game…but with a tactical coach. Scaloni can do that? We will wait and see..!

  4. Overall we did pretty well i guess. We could have scored more. The problem here is now we want to win against Uruguay and for them its the 1st match. Therefore we will be under pressure for sure. Against a better attacking opposition LMQ will be ripped off so as Montial. I hope Monila & Romero will be there with us on the starting 11 from next match. Vidal as usual tricked us. Tagloficio i would say it was hard luck. Only thing Scaloni could have done today was bringing the sub a lil early. Kun n Di Maria should have come on the pitch atleast by 70th minute. Lautaro Martinez n Nico no words man kids tried but resulted in nothing. I expect nothing more from Messi its now on others to try n contribute something. Lo Celso was magical in the 1st half as usual went missing on the 2nd half. Not sure wot Palacios did after coming on. Let’s hope we will become better n better as the tournament progress.

  6. Apart from Messi who dribble past opponents..? LoCelso,Correa and DiMaria tried. Who else?

    We need more dribblers in tight matches…!
    Romero, Senesi for CB pair..! Lisandro is also an option.
    Montiel vs Molina….I can’t decide. Till now…I am not impressed by any of them.
    Tagliafico is must. He’s a real defender. Where was Quarta? He was hiding?

  7. Just one back tackle and we wouldn’t have conceded that penalty. I hope scaloni takes immediate step and reinforce licha or even pezzella back to lineup. No otamendi anymore please.

    Molina in 5 minutes have proved enough. It’s time he permanently replaces Montiel. This is it.

    Lautaro was clearly wasteful and tired today. When a player is already tiring out why can’t you just replace him with a fast winger. Joaquin correa should have come earlier. He could have done a lot damage and maybe a fucking goal as well.

    Not good, definitely not good.

  8. This is what happens when you call all workhorse rather scorers. How many goals nico scored in his career? Why after missing so many chances Lautaro in the pitch until 80th minute? Why not acuna in for tagliafico?? If you need goal from only messi then keep him up front not in the deep. Nico and Lautaro were just running without ambition or direction!!!

    • J.Correa and Aguero instead of one of Lautaro and N.Gonzalez will be okay as they are better goal scorer. But we will see. Long way to go until final. We need fit Aguero in KO

  9. 18 shots on net…Don’t blame the MF. 1 goal given up by the D for a penalty…one mistake that cost us but no goals or many chances from open play so I won’t even blame them….18 shots and 5 of them on target? I know where the problem was. Argentina created, The chances were there…Lautaro and Nico had their boots on backward. Don’t blame De Paul or Montiel….When you bottle 4 or 5 clear and easy finishes in front of goal then a tie is what you’re lucky to get. Everything else was fine aside from the finishing. Should have been 3 or 4 to one…The ref did his part. Gave Chile almost the same penalty that Argentina was appealing for an denied. Denied a handball at the end of game too…I think I know which way this whole thing is going…looks like they’re trying get rid of us early this time. Don’t blame the whole team…the forwards were laughable except Messi as always

  10. Molina played last 10 mins better than montiel. Montiel is piece of shit.
    And our back line is clear joke. Only Tagliafico was better. If we go to WC with this back line people will laugh at us.

  11. I said before but some got offended, Argentine team have zero talented and good players except Messi. This team with stupid coach will not win any games. The most they can get is a tie. These players got themselves names because they play in great clubs in Europe. They are shitty players and the European clubs made them look good. Otherwise, it is a shame to call themselves soccer players. I only feel bad for Messi and again I wish he was born in Brazil, Spain, or German he would have won at least 2-3 national cups including World Cup. But, unfortunately he plays for this shitty Argentine team.

    • OMG…

      I’m frustrated too because we didn’t win but you surely did not see the same Match.. Lo Celso in 1. Half was awesome again really talented.
      Nico is still not fit enough i think…. The biggest mistake, away from not scoring, was that Scaloni made the changes way to late.. Di Maria was good but we need Aguero

    • So many ignorant comments. We played a very solid game. We created many chances. The problem was in the finish. You know nothing about fútbol if you don’t see that.

    • Dude, unnecessary. This isn’t a shitty team..these players are good. Forwards played bad today but they have skill. They had 18 shots on net and some very clear chances to score. Sometimes players are off but they created the chances…if they only give up one goal per match, I’ll take it. The scoring will come. Argentina had zero luck today…zero like always…Just seems like it’s always bad luck…Penalty saved off of the post and hit in…How Unlucky can you be?

    • Quite the opposite. We have a very talented team with more talent than we’ve had in a while. The talent to win it is there we need more chemistry and potentially a better system

  13. I have never been so critical with Argentina team for so long until today but I just want to question everything.

    Mr scaloni, why do you substitute a flowing and crucial player in between the match?

    Why the hell does he substitute lo celso all the time. This kid was going forward more and more.

    And something I wanna say, hate me if you want but I think Messi is making the team very slow.
    I just can’t control myself today.

    It’s fucking unbearable.

  14. I am not much of an expert in football tactics and all. But can someone please tell what Lautaro Martinez brings to the table for us? I dont know why he is there, what is he doing.The guy is just a momentum killer i think.

    We cant win Copa by playing like this. Forget thinking about the WC. We cant compete with the Europeans at present stage. It sounds negative i know. I will always like Argentina NT. But what system are we playing? Are we a counter attacking team?No. Are we playing Tiki Taka?No.I mean we are just playing. This team dont have a Soul to put it in words.

    • Scalonis tactics created 18 chances, The players didn’t finish their chances. You can take the horse to the river but you can’t force it to drink

  17. once again draw with chili…that’s mean now we…this team quality same level with chili..even with messi including…Ok…i heard marcelo gallardo no longer with river plate…we need real tactician…

  18. Great game but poor finishing.. With Romero coming back.. We can be unbeatable.. But finishing is poor.. Hopefully it can improve as the tournament progress.. Again refereeing.. Who selects the refree in these south American matches?? Does fifa has no hand in selecting these idiots??.. Come on Argentina..

    • I felt referee was fair in this match. Liked the way he handled the game & players. Yes last 3 games has been so many missed opportunities. Today lautaro & nico g were guilty

      • If he is the best refree in South America then fifa should really think about having classes for refree in the area.. I am not talking about fairness but his decisions cost Argentina… How can vidal not been red carded.. I mean double yellow for two ruthless tackles on otamendi.. If those tackles will not be yellow carded, believe me they will finish so many player’s career.. That penalty was iffy.. Lot of play being halted for small tackles here and there.. No advantages being given and that halted the rhythm of game in second half.. I hate to say it but refereeing standard of euro Cup is much much better than these copa america referees.. Fifa should rethink about having regional referees.. Seriously

  19. Romero IN Qurta OUT..is surely a big relief for next match. Hope LoCelso will get match fitness by KO stage. Montiel had bad aand good moments. Tagliafico given a penalty (but it was not as per commentators too) but he save us..two or three occasions. Otamendi done very well except one or two occasions.
    Overall good game… except wasteful chances… Lautaro and N.Gonzalez….Nico’s two chances were the most easiest.

  20. Really really disappointed.

    Martinez wasted a lot, Gonzales blew away two killer chances. And absolutely poor defending.

    Otamendi, quarta and Montiel just drove me nuts today. I can’t bear anymore. My patience is over.

    Why on earth is scaloni so late with his substitutions? Why?

    A winnable game and we draw. There should have been 3 red cards for chile, especially vidal.

    Var is again doing its job for Argentina’s downfall.

  21. One of the best matches played by Argentina so far…lautaro missed 2 sitters and nico missed 3 sitters…..luck was not on our side….but this is what is expected of Argentina….if romero comes in our back line would be much more solid….VAMOS ALBICELESTE
    And that was not a penalty…the ball was kicked before the foul

  23. Yet again a frustrating performance against stubborn Chile. We just lack the wit to beat them it seems. Lautaro hugely disappointing just like Montiel. Aguero came on way too late. With 4 out of 5 qualifying there are no worries to reach 1/4 finals.
    After watching several Euro games it is very clear this team is unfortunately no contender for the WC. Therefore, this copa is a MUST win.

  24. We need to be more clinical. Midfield was decent for most part of the game. Was excellent at some point. Defenders tried well.
    Dimaria deserves it once more. He’s in really good form and not wasting chances like he used to, before with Argentina.

    But not for this Pathetic manager and his tactics (If there’s any) this team would have won the match easily

  25. Here someone will say: we r not loosing so its going well…
    we need new tactical coach thats the truth. Romero is missed today.

    • Let Aguero get a chance ahead of Lautaro.
      Lautaro is out of touch now, coming in as sub might actually help him recover the form.

      Kun needs confidence now. And we need a great goal scorer now. It will work well for all the parties.

  26. Lautaro could have shoot, he passed it back to Messi
    Nico could have shoot, he passed it back to Messi
    Everytime we could have killed the game, we either emulate Pipita’s finishing or pass the back to Messi.

    Scolani failed to win for 3 competitive games in a row.

  27. VAR is always against Argentina.
    Isnt that hand ball..? Cleared with hand…!

    Today’s match…I won’t speak against Scaloni. It was players..missed easy chances…score line would have been at least 5-1. But we wasted.

    • come on you can call a hand like that ! It was a good call from the refeere because the new rules are like that.

      And the penalty of Tagliafico was clear. The only mistake is the second yellow card for Vidal.

      No reason to cry. Montiel, Otamendi, Quarta and Tagliafico was a disaster again, Lautaro is overhyped like hell ! it’s a very regular player, not a top ! Gonzalez had activity but he cant score …. Paredes and De Paul are fucking useless ! They give no football !

      I only save Emiliano Martinez, Messi, the first half of Lo Celso and the good start of Di Maria

  30. This shit midfield young generation cannot defend, cannot attack. Can do nothing. There was no intensity.

    Scaloni is the shittiest coach who could not find a proper combination after 2 years…

  32. Di Maria was decent today.

    If I’m being honest Messi was out of form. Besides the free kick he was absent the entire match tbh.

    Overall a very mediocre performance. So many fouls and stoppages. Very poor defense especially and so many unnecessary back passes. We are not bold enough to attack.

  33. The defence is to blame for the penalty but the finishing has been embarrassing…Argentina should have 4 or 5 goals…this is laughable

  35. How many more times… Every major tournament a random inexperienced defender (normally right back) and a random attacking winger (left wing) make their way into the starting eleven. De-stabilising both wings in the process… I’ve given up now, these people are insane might as well let Conmebol go ahead and rob them in daylight. This national team is full of fear.

  36. Too many stoppages inbetween the match, there is no continuity in the match. Its really tough to see us this way. Scoring an open goal will be really tough with the way we are playing. Its not because of the players. If we take X out and put Y in place it will still be same. SMH. I remember watching us in 2006 WC. The football was such free flowing. Now? Its just plain boring. The way we are playing is bad. I dont know what else to say.

    Not complaining but wait for the match between France and Germany tommarrow its gonna be a cracker. We will find the difference. Its sad that we cant even play 10 passes together.

    • Who want Lautaro ? This guy is Overhyped like hell !

      —————–Aguero
      —–Gonzalez–Messi—Di Maria
      ————-Guido–Lo Celso
      Acuna—Lisandro—Romero—Molina
      —————–Martinez

  50. I’m not here to bad mouth any particular player or system.
    One question we all should ask is
    Why do we get exposed so badly with no protection for the back line??

  51. From Now LMQ & Ota Should remember as Argentine legend & Scaloni is ultra legend for playing them every match..You cab clearly see the difference between Great Ota & C.Romero Same play but how romero handle in Qualifier & now we see great defending from Ota & Chili get penalty 🤣🤣🤣 Good job Scaloni keep playing them & play with our felling 👍👍👍🇦🇷🇦🇷🇮🇳

  54. Great effin save! what a boost in confidence.
    Shame Tag kicked Vidal in the nuts but there’s still time to score. time for Aguero and ADM. Vamos!!

  55. bloody shit latauro martinez bulldog. all the time he is falls downloading on the pitch. useless. he is spoiling all the game rhythm.

  58. Here we go again, even when the penalty is saved, it goes in…I’m starting to think there is a rain cloud over this team all of the time

  60. What a goal keeper we have in Emi Martinez. Start him in every match. The moment they were awarded penalty i had a feeling that he will stop it. He did infact unfortunately for the rebound. Dammmnnn

    • I had the same feeling as you did. Reminded me of Aston Villa vs Sheffield United. First penalty he faced in his team he saved and I had a feeling it would be repeated.

  69. Positives
    1. Lo Celso, Nico and Messi had a superb first half.

    2. De Paul as usual

    3. Otamendi doing good so far

    4. Emi is the man

    Negatives

    1. Lautaro is off form. Missed two sitters. Aguero should come in

    2. LMQ isn’t the man we thought he is. Licha should come in.

    3. How many deep lying playmaking did Parades do? None. Want to see Guidao.

  71. My analysis of the first half
    This was an improved performance to the previous match against chile .
    The midfield is gelling well and we are finding rhythm in the middle. Lo celso especially is lifting the weight off messi in terms of feeding the ball to the attack.
    Lautaro seems to be again back to his mini goal drought this guy needs to score to get his confidence back . Nicolas Gonzalez was fine he still requires some match fitness to get back to his best but also needs to be careful not to get injured

    In defense Martinez quarta was a complete shitstorm this guy has to be replaced as soon as Romero gets fit otherwise it could be trouble for argentina. Fortunately otamendi seems to be playing solid and needs to maintain this form. Montiel played really well and had a good understanding with messi and de Paul on the right flank , tagliafico was okay nothing special in his performance . Nothing specific to mention about emi Martinez as he wasn’t tested much .

  72. There is a massive disrepect towards De paul and otamendi in this forum. But any proper footballer would tell you, these two are the most important players for us after Messi.

  75. What montiel did? Totally wasted..
    Lmq also same
    Lautaro miss easy chances, should sub by aguero
    Even de paul not on the mark

  77. Please, Scaloni, resist your temptation to hook Lo Celso early for Palacios.

    But replace Lautaro at 60 with Kun. Maybe Pezella for LMQ

  80. Hope the boys won’t start play as slow as against colombia….till now the play is ok bt in 2nd half we always suffer in previous…
    tagliafico and lo celso chemistry seems good in right side i think molina should come replace to monteil if de paul is not change….and lich should come place off quarta….
    hope will get a good win inshaAllah…

  82. We need some changes. LMQ need to be out. Montiel another rubbish RB. Even icardi would have score that many chances…. Need Aguero at 60. Or angel Correa who is very sharp in the box

  88. Referee is the tallest guy on the pitch
    Anyway what is the purpose of montiel in the team i saw him playing 4 back passes in the first half. He is just man marking and playing back pass when he gets the ball. Never seen a bogus RB in Argentine shirt. Weakest link no doubt.

    Thanks to messi we scored

  89. What is LMQ doing ? Why he even in the 11 ??? He give away ball 4-5 times… Got yellow card for no reason. Lautaro need some rest. Can see Aguero for lautaro even Angel Correa for lautaro will be good

  92. Well I can safely say we are better than the Faroe Islands. I said this after the first Chile game, “it can only get better”, and it certainly has. I would like to see Kun come on because Lautaro is wasting chances and also licha because of Quarta’s yellow card

  93. Overrated Lautaro Martinez should be substituted lacks killer indict of a striker,Sergio Aguero should come.

  94. First impressions
    Terrible pitch, Lo Celso with some good passes, best man on the pitch: the referee.
    Gonzalez and Lautaro should have scored. Wonderful goal from Messi.

    • I think both of Lautaro chances gone because of ground issues. Ball bounces differently and slips. Ground is not good. N. Fernandez should have buried that. No excuses.

      • I thought of the last game against Chile and said to myself he has to bag this one, and he did, Claudio bravo must have sensed that this time Leo will beat him.

    • Montiel can’t defend or attack. All he does is pass backward. Molina should be better than this. Quarta is mediocre. He can’t play at the top label.

  120. For all those who scream why ARG perform bad while other big teams are killing it out there…..Spain is still on nil nil against Sweden and it has been 88 minutes.

    • Jus hope we dont do a spain. They seem so lost. Vamos argentina..i want to see the argentina that played chile in the 3rd spot match in copa 2019.

    • Oíd, mortales, el grito sagrado:

      “¡Libertad, libertad, libertad!”
      Oíd el ruido de rotas cadenas,
      ved en trono a la noble igualdad.

      Ya su trono dignísimo abrieron
      las Provincias Unidas del Sud
      y los libres del mundo responden:
      “Al gran pueblo argentino, ¡salud!”
      Y los libres del mundo responden:
      “Al gran pueblo argentino, ¡salud!”

      Sean eternos los laureles
      que supimos conseguir,
      que supimos conseguir.
      Coronados de gloria vivamos…
      ¡o juremos con gloria morir!

      • Could u please translate that for us in English, as many of us do not understand spanish but love Argentina from bottom of our hearts.

        • Hear, mortals, the sacred cry:
          “Freedom! Freedom! Freedom!”
          Hear the sound of broken chains
          See noble equality enthroned.

          Their most worthy throne have now opened
          The United Provinces of the South.
          And the free people of the world reply:
          “To the great Argentine people, hail!”
          And the free ones of the world reply:
          “To the great Argentine people, hail!”

          May the laurels be eternal
          that we were able to achieve
          Let us live crowned in glory
          Or let us swear to die with glory!

  125. Expect some yellows today. Chile plays rough/fouls and is frustrating. Otamendi & Pardes need to keep their cool. Let’s see if our guys show improvement today.

  126. Time for positive vibes! 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 ⚽ 🇦🇷 Vamos!

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