Lionel Messi, Emiliano Martinez comment on Argentina’s Copa America opener

By
Roy Nemer
-
214

Lionel Messi and Emiliano Martinez spoke to the media following Argentina’s 1-1 draw vs. Chile at the Copa America.

While Messi scored and should have had a few assists to his name, his team only managed one and one point by the end of it all. Scoring an incredible free kick vs. Chile, Messi gave Argentina the 1-0 lead going into half time.

However, for the third straight match, the team was unable to maintain that advantage. Speaking to the media following the game, here’s what Messi had to say:

“It was a complicated. We were missing tranquility, controlling the ball and playing quicker. The penalty changed the match. We wanted to start by winning. Now we have Uruguay which will also be complicated. But you need to think about the next match now.”

Emiliano Martinez managed to save a penalty kick but was unable to stop the rebound. However, beginning his third consecutive match, Martinez has shown that he is more than capable of handling the pressure that comes with being the Argentina national team goalkeeper. Speaking after the match, here is what Emiliano had to say:

“I believe in all three matches, we were superior to our rivals. We had a few chances to finish it and we couldn’t. Chile managed a big draw, for us, we’re left with a bitter taste.

“There are things to improve but what we created today was impressive. When one goes in, they’ll all start to go in. The group is very united and we’re confident in ourselves.

“It’s a shame about the penalty. I didn’t see that it hit the crossbar and it rebounded right at them.”

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214 Comments

  1. Argentina rarely win big or start big in a tournament. We grow slowly in Tournaments where we went far or the final.
    Remember Cameroon in 90? Or the last Copa.

  2. Wow i found it:
    1-0 Messi free kick goal xG 0.11
    1-1 Vargas goal xG 0.44 (heads in rebound after Vidal misses penalty)
    12th minute Lautaro Martinez chance xG 0.62
    18th minute Nicolas Ivan Gonzalez chance xG 0.45
    80th minute Nicolas Ivan Gonzalez header chance xG 0.42
    90+1 minute Messi header chance xG 0.45

    53rd minute Vargas chance xG 0.41 (saved by keeper, but Argentina conceded penalty in same move)
    57th minute Vidal penalty chance xG 0.80 (saved but Vargas scores from rebound)

    Messi header 0,45? Wow dont remember this, i want to see the whole match again.

  3. – In the last Copa when we played Brazil, Aguero shot then was fouled and the referees said it wasn’t a penalty and now the same situation Chile shot then get fouled and it’s a penalty.
    Argentina don’t have respect in CONMEBOL or FIFA and always get treated unfairly.

    – I am rooting for Emilaino Martinez because our coaches when they select a keeper they seem stick to him no matter what, only extraordinary situations like injury they change their mind.
    it’ s a position we needed change.

    – I didn’t like the defence beside Tagliafico.
    Otamendi didn’t look good when Chile scored.
    Molina-Romero-L.Martinez-Tagliagfico should be the defence.

    – N. Gonzalez and L. Martinez are sometimes unbearable clumsy.

    • Hello Ghostdeini,
      I think even though Nico gonzalez missed sitters yesterday, he had good match as a winger. Much more productive than any wingers we had recently. He has been injured for last 3 months, so he is lacking in sharpness.

      It is Lautaro Martinez we should be worried about. He is in poor form for last 10+ games. For Inter, he barely got scoring chances. For Argentina, he misses easiest of chances. It is not something new

      • Definitely agree with this. Although he missed some good chances the explosiveness and intricate runs from him definitely helped the team. I have a feeling Emi is right, as soon as one goal starts to come the rest will follow.

        As per the Martinez comment, he has been lacking in terms of goals. I guess he is used to playing with a second striker. In the last Copa I think that’s when I saw him the most effective, in my opinion at least haha.

    • Sadly, for Nico all the chances fell to his weaker right foot. The problem is the no.9 position. Like a cancer, the mediocrity of that position grows. 20 years?? Since Batistuta.
      People would have a go at me, but this team is dying for a Icardi. No nonsense, keeping it simple and stay in and around the box.
      Scaloni should put biases aside and look at the bigger picture. Facundo Medina is another guy I want drafted into the senior team ASAP.

  4. Match xG Argentina 2.93- Chile 1.55 (penalty is 0,76 plus the rebuilding shot was very high too, no real chance besides these), plus a lot of attempts when Gonzalez or Lautaro wanted to pass instead of shooting from good positions (not in the xG modell). Gonzalez off the ball movements and runnings (with and without the ball too) are very very good, imo the best since Claudio Lopez, who was a break the line machine too. Very important player and a must in the starting 11, just like Lautaro.

  5. The main reason that we didn’t win was the fact that we didn’t convert our chances! Simple as that. People expect grom Scaloni to be flawless. I am not saying that he didn’t do mistakes but generally, at least in my sight of view, we played well yesterday, much better than Chile!

    A wasted one on one with the keeper from Gonzalez (who is one of my favourite players), a missed header by him again, two unbelievable wastes from Martinez, i couldn’t believe this! He missed a sitter from one meter away from the goal post after an amazing pass and later on, he missed on his own in front of the goal. Those two chances which were almost a certain goal, a tap in was just needed, are the first steps a striker learns and don’t get me wrong, i like Martinez a lot. Moreover, Messi had a good shot on goal but Bravo made a brilliant save and all the above, in the first half only where Chile was non existent! Now, if we have gotten advantage of half of the above chances, the score would have been at 3-0 but we wasted them all!

    Now, lets go to the second half! I agree with some people in here that our play was regressed but we still created chances! Nico gonzalez, after a wonderful pass from Messi wasted another chance, later on after a good team play, we recovered the ball in the middle of the pitch, made a good attack and after a good through ball found Gonzalez one on one with the keeper but instead of shooting he prefered to pass and i think the same Lautaro did later on. Bravo made another good save from a shot by Messi again and Argentina was pressing to find the goal till the end.

    Now i am asking: How many chances we have to create in order to score a single fucking goal? This is not Scaloni’s fault, this is our forwards fault.

    Therefore, the way i see it:
    1. We can create many chances, this is not the case. The problem is that someone has to make them a goal, especially the sitters! People are keep talking about Buendia, and i can’t say that i disagree with them, but for me the miss of Alario is a massive blow! Aguero is a legend indeed but i don’t think that he can offer us much, simply because his time is passed sadly! If we continue to waste chances like that, i don’t think that we will go far, especially in a tournament where breeze blows against us! One more reason to score as many we can!

    2. Another major problem, is players mentality! Low confidence and if things are not going our way, seems that they feel doom and gloom like many posters in here! Fighting spirit and persistence till the end win tournaments! If your confidence collapse because things are not going your way, you have already lost even before the final whistle! That was way too evident from the game against Colombia too. After Emi’s injury, everything went wrong. This is something that Scaloni and stuff have to address immediately or else we won’t go far.

    3. Concentration. The defence is not fancy but the main problem is that they are not remained focused throughout the whole game! We may play above average defensively and look solid but all of a sudden, a blunder will happen and everything will be screwed! Chile stole the game twice from us with the same way, they even won two copas against us that way! They produce 1/3 of the chances we do, but still they try to defend cautiously afainst us, they are more focused than us, they are much more calm than us and all they do is to bet on a mistake from us and take advantage of it.

    I think that Scaloni is not doing bad at all! Our strikers blow it big time and the team as a whole feels way to much pressure! If we take into consideration the fact that most of our key players are out of form, makes things even harder!

    We have to chill and throw the pressure away! Gain confidence, fight till the very last minute, never give up and stay focus and take our chances because evidently we are able to create a lot! I don’t think that Brazil created more than us against Venezuela B team. I think that if we adress the above we will be fine.

    Sorry for the long post.

    VAMOS ARGENTINA!

    • Im agree that alario is big miss for the team. Lautaro and aguero almost identical Except lautaro moves a lot and ageuro is lethal infront of goal.. They are both same height.. There is one tall striker missing from the team.. Now about Icardi his finishing is good but he sits back and then suddenly act it has some lazy part and it will not effectful for team like Argentina … And about alario he hasn’t that lazy part he works for the chances and very strong in air.. And if he used as sub he could always bring something different in the field in the attack

    • I liked your analysis. I also have the same feeling that Scaloni is not doing bad. Actually I had much low expectation when the senior players retired . This team is playing decent so far , working hard , creating chances. It is far from an ideal team but I have accepted that these are possible best players we have at this moment. Changing coach will not solve the problem . I have seen how our supporters have been crying for coaches since those Tata Martino days. I remember few years back people were dying for Tagliafico, Paredes as if they are the missing puzzles..This team needs consistency..

  6. In the last 7 years we’ve lost our footballing ethos and identity.
    If we had won 3 nil last night it would’ve still been a painstakingly hard watch.
    I read that we have got a decent midfield. I think its above average buy nothing more….unless its management that can’t get them to train on controlling the game.
    Slow and laboured. It’s been like that for 7 years. Static, another word I would use.
    Wasted fullbacks. It doesn’t matter who the personnel’s are in that position, they’re not confident to run in behind and go wide. Either the coach is cautious and holds them back or the players have the fear kicked into them once they put the NT shirt on.
    Otamendi, headless chicken who needed to be led and not to lead. He isn’t intelligent. He needs a confident intelligent CB partner to tell him when to commit and when to hold. He had Kompany at City. As soon as he left, Nico was exposed. Shame, he needs to go for our sake and his own.
    No intensity in play. Don’t think we will see it some time soon.
    Roll on Friday for more gut wrenching experience.
    It’s being a beleaguered and a disillusioned fan that keeps us going…..

  7. DEAR MUNDO COMMENTS

    Ignore KEVIN at all costs don’t fall for his stupid comments the man knows absolutely nothing about futbol. Feel free to interact here with everyone but KEVIN it’s a waste of your time, go ahead and have insightful conversations with all the albiceleste fans here but just remember that most of the people here give 2 shits about the national team they only care about messi like KEVIN Over here who knows nothing about the national team but would die for messi. Know what you are getting into with these conversations because there are hundreds of retards like Kevin so just beware

    • Let us All relax and not be stressed by the result today. If the players are not able to convert their chances into goals the coach should not be blamed.

      If Argentina plays well they deserve to win the championship

      • Not only that mmh bro.. Kevin did not watch the game and he just saw the newspaper.. There are so many guys like him in this forum who are here to create mess.. He just saw two cards for L Martinez.. Hey didn’t know that one was Lucas quarta and other lautaro.. Shame on ashholes

    • These salty River Plate fans can not stand the truth. They always support mediocrity, because their club along with them is mediocre. Quarta Martinez, Palacios are blocking the real talent of Europe ,Montiel may be may be good addition.Argentina need to get rid of those mediocre players.

  8. Expect argentina to be more defensive against Uruguay… Nico GONZALEZ angel Correa messi should start AGAINST them

  9. montiel was widely unpresent in todays game. tagliafico was ok but didn’t represent widely and quarta still new comer.. and two man who was main engine for argentina in the game was locelso and gonzales.. i hope scaloni has the alternative to locelso and gonzales.. presence of this two players very much effective for messi..

  10. See if you don’t have a proper right back accept the fact and move on. Play 3 CDs. Then play Acuna & Di Maria on the flanks. There is no point in debating btw Monila and Montial. There is nothing much to expect from both.
    A combination of Ottamandi, L.Martinez &C.Romero will be a good enough. We can go for 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 depending upon the opposition and situation of the game. Build the team from defense. Not even in our prime we could score plenty of goals and I don’t think now we can either.

    Emi
    C.Romero-Ottamendi-Licha
    Di Maria-De Paul- G.Gonzalez-Lo Celso-Acuna
    Messi-Aguero

    Or

    Emi
    C.Romero-Ottamendi-Licha
    Di Maria-De Paul-Lo Celso-Acuna
    Messi- L.Martinez- J.Corea

    Subs
    Depending upon the situation of the game.

  11. It absolutely blows my mind that Beundia was not selected. Yeah, he played in EFL and not PL but he was chosen as Player of the Season for a reason.

    Have we ever seen Papu Gomez and Messi together on the pitch? 🤦‍♀️🤷‍♀️

    Messi should be upfront. We’re wasting his goal scoring skills if he has to track back. I think I saw him in defense against Chile.

    If Jude Bellingham & Pedri at the of 17&18 can play for their countries, why not Adolfo Gaich for us And Lautaro, boy needs shooting practice. No disrespect to anyone but he seems to be on the way to become Higuain 2.0😞

    Defense- why Otamendi? We have other defenders like Lisandro Martinez 😤

    It reminded me of watching FC Barcelona play. Slow on the counter, weak defense, strikers can’t find the net and only the GK and Messi trying to save the match. I’m depressed😫😨

  12. So, from far away (city Split, Croatia) the game was like slow motion of boxer punch. I cant belive how slow we played and sadly how predictiable our game was. Not even one quick attack was made, not even one try of something different was made….., we wont go far with this kind od play. I really dont understand scaloni game.plan but he, till now, had enough tome to build something from team. Its not about this copa, next year is wc and i dont see light at the end of tuneel. I hope that i am wrong but yesterday was awfull. Still dreming……

  13. When vidal run to shot for plenty others chilian also starts run. As a result they get the goal..
    But attitude Argentine player at the same time they run after ball stop by Martinez.
    So sloppy.. Players as well as scaloni should attention to this type of error

  14. On the positives, it is to be noted that the team hasn’t lost in two years. However, quite a few winnable games have ended up in draws. As they say, winning is a habit and sooner than later, I am hoping the team makes winning a habit. Specifically, in the present context, the team needs to find a way to hold on to the leads. I am of the opinion that the absence of a proper midfield destroyer is one of the prime reasons for the team losing many midfield battles that result in the already unsettled defense committing errors which eventually costs the team the match. Leandro Paredes’ role as an out-and-out defensive midfielder has not been very encouraging. The team management can think of using the gutsy Lisandro Martinez in this role as he has played in this position for his club on many occasions. Around him, two central midfielders who are more on the creative side can be deployed. Who knows, this little adjustment may work well for the team. Further, though nothing much to choose between them, Nahuel Molina still appears better than Gonzalo Montiel and on the other side I think Nicolas Tagliafico is on borrowed time….it may soon be curtains for him.

  15. Guys chill. It’s a long TOURNAMENT. I am happy to see team is already shaped just need few inclusions and exclusions. This copa will be ours if no corruption. Just relax and watch the team to play and pray for good luck. Don’t need stress ourselves to much.

  16. Dybla 20 matches 4 goals 3 assist 2020-21season
    E. Palacios 9 games 0 goals 0 assists 2020-21season
    This looks biased. Dybla should have been in the team. If Scaloni does not win Copa he should resign from the post for the sake of betterment of Argentina football team. River Plate quota system is damaging national team. Messi needs to speak.

    • How can you compare Palacios and dybala? One is a central midfielder and other is a forward.
      Btw I also rate Palacios highly. He is good with the ball and without the ball, yes he is not as creative as lo celso but his stamina is good and defensively he is more stable than lo celso.
      The disappointments are Paredes who is just too static. He tried his best but he wasn’t getting into the game much. I expect more form him.
      And de Paul too, he looks like a guy without ideas. Yes , he is a workhorse and all but when he get into some good position in the final third I want more from him because he has the ability to do so.
      All in all i think we have a very good midfield

      • No comparison but selection is issue. There is no player who does not have some qualities but we have to judge them relatively and Palacios brings nothing to the table as compared to others. Emi Buendai would have been much much better than him. Paredes, De Paul and Lo celso can bring more to the table than Palacios. Palacios is selected because of River Plate such player should be ashamed of themselves as they are blocking better talent. Palacios, Quarta Martinez,Montiel belong to that category because of them talented player are not in the team.

  17. Horrible game, argentina have to switch it all up vs uruguay, this team wont work. & the bench doesnt look too promising. Messi & emiliano martinez are the only ones working in this squad.

  18. People saying we created many chances but it had nothing to do with tactics it was just individual masterpiece from lo celso and messi . Where were the chances after substition of lo celso. This is where shithead Scaloni could have used Buendia.

    • No locelso also not creating much in 2nd half im sure this team has stamina issue actually even after locelso gone we created 1-2 chances like in last phase j. Correa was slow to react and chile defense cleared a sure goalscoring opportunity. 1st priority should be striker position and offcourse defense. If we can make defense good we can win and lautaro form is a concern. You r saying like spain created chances in 2010 wc because of xavi iniesta not because of the coach obviously every team creates chances because of the good players if u remove they will struggle im sure if Argentina plays lisandro Martinez and Romero in cb and 2 decent fullbacks then u will see our defense become solid even under scaloni bt biggest problem of scaloni is that he is ignoring real talented players like lisandro Martinez senesi medina buendia lamela Dybala etc for mediocre players until he keeps starting those mediocre players Argentina will always struggle

      • “You r saying like spain created chances in 2010 wc because of xavi iniesta not because of the coach”
        Yes if any abc coach would managed those team they would still be World champion those guys were so technically good and tactically intelligent. In 2010 in some matches where iniesta was substituted by David Silva still they dominated the game its not like lo celso out and attack was dead.
        We have only hope that Aguero gets back to even half of his level. Because Scaloni is clueless in other nations he would not be allowed to manage U19 national team.

  19. We need to fight with whatever resources we have, there is no point in crying and dreaming about the 2006 WC playing style and all. I think Scaloni need to put more ball playing players in the middle. Like 3-5-2. Even though this format never benefited us recently, but we need to start scoring Goals from open play. Has Papu ever started along with Messi for us? I don’t think so. Why not try that.

    I am not someone who posts fancy line up. Because it’s useless. But will the below work? I don’t know, just a thought

    Emiliano
    Romero-Otamendi-Lisandro
    Molina-Lo Celso-De Paul-Papu-Acuna
    Messi-Aguero

    We are wasting Messi’s goal scoring ability. He is nowhere near the opposition penalty box. At this age he can’t do the tracking back and score at the same time. To be fair if Aguero is fit start him ahead of Lautaro who looks useless at this point. We dont have an Enganche like Aimar or Riquelme with us. So we may need to use more ball playing Midfielders like Lo Celso, Papu etc. Paredes is more defensive. (I like him by the way)

  20. My match review— we played well in first half our fast play created lots of goal scoring opportunities bt they missed sitters at one hand those misses r bad on the other hand it’s good that we created that much opportunities after ages. But in 2nd half our play was slow with no intensity atall so don’t know what’s the problem mayb they r not fit enough to play with intensity all match. Locelso was fantastic messi even with that fantastic goal wasn’t involved enough and again walking most of the game. Depaul worked hard defensively bt not much in final third dimaria played okay. Nico Gonzalez was fantastic he will eventually start to score so im not worried bt lautaro form is a big concern i saw Aguero for last 16-17 min bt he was completely washed no movement or pressing can be seen now lautaro not scoring and we don’t have Dybala or icardi or even alario so i don’t know how we solve the striker crisis.
    Now coming to our defense both half our defense was shit. Montiel and quarta looked like a school level player they were misplacing so many passes and defending was horrible we need to atleast change this 2 players asap in 5-10 minutes molina played decent he should replace montiel and lisandro Martinez should replace quarta in next match.coming to otamendi he was decent today bt looked horrible in the prior penalty play and for me otamendi should be only now an injury replacement he always do 1-2 mistake in a game and Romero when fit we should employ Romero lisandro cb pairing. Now coming to tagliafico i don’t like him we should try out acuna in lb. Scaloni needs to throw out his favoritism for Argentina this river plate bullshit is killing the team and looking at the 2nd half performance it feels like the team also not fit enough to continue for 90 mins needs to address that.

  21. Nico didn’t play a game for 3 months and recently came from injury too and still he created those runs,taking defenders on and hustling. Those miss were rare and painful but I would take them in group stages rather then in knock out. My worries is we played slow in second half and let Chile control the game. This happened same in qualify too. Defence was panicking and giving the ball away too easily. Also Montiel has to give away for Molina. They better analyse the second half asap and come with better attitudes and plan for Uruguay. Uruguay would be tougher. Little relief Romero would be back by then. Also Tagliafico had bad and good game. He was beaten by Vargas in penalty. He was out run by Vargas in 6 yard.

  22. Serie A is easiest league I do not highly rate their players especially forward players. La liga and Premiere League players are much better.
    In Premiere League or in la liga Lautaro Martinez will suffer. Its time for Guido Rodriguez to be selected in playing 11.He will cover the defence but Scaloni is hesitant.If Paredes does not go for his play making abilities and long balls he is useless in that case G. Rodriguez deserves chance.

  23. I said here during the last Copa 2019, AFA will consider semi finalist as a good result and keep Scaloni for his job and nothing will be improved. That’s exactly what happened.

  25. Lautaro should start finishing the goal … He is so bad again… Sclaoni made a huge blunder by not selecting Dybala. Angel Correa should play every much as sub…

    • I dont think our front line is a problem we have eough option. Top class players. They just need to execute. But what about defense? Can Scaloni perform well with these defense in Qatar 2022?

  26. Really don’t understand not selection of lisandaro Martinez… Parades can’t be DM.. need a better option
    GK . Emi Martinez is way ahead of any of the GK we have…

    • We still need RB.CB DM Montiel is so waste no Europe country will put him on bench. Same for LMQ. where was he for the 1st goal ? It’s scaloni who didn’t see what his player doing on the fields

      • Molina is good RB i think.Yes CB is a problem. Scaloni is blind or may be he needs experience.Some how we can manage with Romero and Otamendi but in World cup Scaloni needs depth in team so that Romero doesn’t have to take all the responsibility

  28. In modern football speed and powerful defense is must if you want to win tournament. Every european teams are building solid defense.
    Powerful full back who can run 90 min with same speed , tall and strong CB.
    But Scaloni is doing just opposite. No strength, speed in full back. Except Romero no proper CB. What is in his mind? I believe LMQ, Montiel, Pezzella are piece of shit compared to a euro team defenders. Is Argentina seriously lacking talented defenders that these players are selected. More over they are continuously performing bad for NT. May be Scaloni searching for a good RB that’s why he selected Molina. But what about CB? LMQ,Pezzella seriously? Scaloni need at least 7-8 years of time to build a team.

    • We beat Bolivia in La Paz.
      The point is you cannot compare one match to another or one opponent’s performance with another. There is no such scale like that.
      Whats your point?

    • Every match is different. Chile has quality players with workrate. If you compare like these thn let me give you some examples. In 2010 wc Switzerland beat spain in 1st match so Switzerland should win wc by your argument. France in 2018 wc drew with Denmark yes our defense is shit that’s a concern

      • “He who scores more goals is the winner” Thats how we beat Bolivia in La Paz. Very Simple. Great hustle by Latauro in La Paz.

        @Anuparno great example mate. Explains my point.

  30. I do not know what happens to Argentina in 2nd half,first half was awesome many good chances created.Is there stamina problem or Scaloni has no plan for second half game. They have to fight till the final whistle. Some key players are not selected by Scaloni that is hurting Argentina.
    At least Dybla was must I have doubt on Lautaro Martinez’s finishing and Aguero’s fitness. If Aguero can pull off whole tournament then Argentina has chance to win copa

  31. We played well, especially in the first half and created many chances. The team is improving and I feel optimistic. The chances missed by Lautaro and Nico don’t often happen in the same game. Hopefully, we will finish better in the coming matches.

    One thing that worries me is the change of mentality in the second half once we are leading. I don’t know if it’s because of coaches tactics or player’s mentality. This issue isn’t new to Argentina football despite numerous painful records, including the most famous 2006 world cup QF against Germany.

    Which brings to the Germany- Brazil World Cup SF in 2014. Had we leading 4-0 against Brazil, Scaloni’s Argentina would have reverted to defensive in the second half and would have never scored another 3 goals against Brazil. That’s the difference between the mentality of Germany and Argentina. As much as they are our archenemy, we must accept their strengths and learn from it.

    In every match, it seems the defense is costing us the game miserably against the flow of the game. There are laps in defense, but I think these lapses become more frequent and evident because of the lack of a quality DM to shield our poor defensive line.

    Which brings to the utility of Parades in this team. I know there are some ardent Parades supporters in this forum, and that he scored a nice goal in the qualifier. But, my question, how frequently he is performing his responsibilities (deep lying playmaker) for which he is in the team? How many long range passes did we see from him in the last three matches? I would like to see his position is challenged by Guaido and Dominguez. Guaido of Betis is not the same player we had in the last copa. If Parades can’t perform well, it is a liability for our defense and a limitation for De Paul. I am not a Parades hater, I just want to see a good balance in the middle.

    Emi
    RB——Romero—— Otamendi —— Tegli/Acuna
    DePaul—-Guaido—-LoCelso
    Lautaro—Messi—-Gonzalez

    I want to see more of Licha coming off Otamendi, but I thing Otamendi needs to stay in this Copa for the transition, especially when we don’t have a Mascherano like player to organize, lead the defensive aspect. I wouldn’t rely 100% on completely new comers for high pressure games with the Argentina shirt, though both Licha and Romero have experience playing high pressure games with their respective clubs. Club and national team games are not the same.

    • I usually praise Paredes but yeah, he is not performing like last Copa or like he does for Poch in PSG. He needs to complete more long balls and use more of that precise passing. Scaloni should sub him off early for Guido so that he feels threatened and puts in more effort and thinking.

    • Paredes is not consistent. Scaloni thinks 1-0 score will win the match and he brings negativity to the players. Players are not going for kill. PLayers fitness and stamina are huge concern.

  32. I am very happy with the amount of goals we created today. Unfortunately Latauro is completely out of form and low on confidence. Lets start Aguero next match and lets give Latauro the opportunity to come off the bench and get his form back cos it is important we have both Strickers in form for Copa.
    Lets look at it. We cannot bring Dybala or Icardi in the starting XI now. So please stop crying…whats done is done. We cannot bring Buendia in the starting line up now so PLEASE lets talk about Buendia after Copa. Cos as I see it now we are creating enough chances. All we need is finishing the goals not Buendia at the moment. And we cant have him in Copa now. Lets think inside the box.
    Lets talk about Romero, lets talk about Lisandro, molina or even Acuna. Cos we have them. After Copa we can talk about Dybala, Buendia, X, Y, Z.
    Lets talk about – off the bench players. Dimaria did well today. What impact the Correas can make? We have the players in the 28 roster of Copa 2021 to win it. Cos as I see we are improving every game. Its about clicking at the right time in a tournament. I would rather click in the knock outs. If we start scoring it will be over.
    Vamos

    • Though I like aguero, i feel he is past his prime. N yesterday when he came in in the 70th min or so, he was jogging around without any energy. I kno he is Man C legend, but Arg needs to move on.

  33. One good news is overrated Lautaro Martinez can not play against Uruguay as he got 2 yellow card in match vs Chile.

  34. So many bastrds here are again coming to bash Argentina by scolding scaloni.. They have not even watched the match.. Believe me.. They are here because of hatred they have in their mind for their parents for having them.. Total bullsshits… Argentina played a great match.. After long time I have seen them dominating Midfield especially in first half.. Lo celso nico Gonzalez were great.. De Paul was fine as well as Paredes.. But just the finishing was wayward
    . Nico and lautaro misses two or three clear chances.. Hopefully they can improve that as the tournament progresses.. Talking about defense otamendi was tight.. He looked good.. Montiel and tagli were pretty good.. With Romero coming in they will look solid..please scaloni don’t fall into the trap of these bastrds and stay with same team.. Just a Romero for quarta when he gets totally fit as we need him for later stages of this long tournament … Vamos Argentina.. We can win the tournament this time.. Its coming home..

    • well said…we created lots of chances from the mid…if scaloni had selected buendia instead of palacios and played lisandro instead of otamendi…the team would’ve been perfect…its time to use players like senesi and lisandro in the defense to give them the much needed confidence before the WC

      • U are right.. May be we can try aguero in third match.. Let’s continue with same team at least for two matches in a row.. Romero should be there when he gets totally fit otherwise if he gets injured again that will not be good.. Diamaria looks good when he comes as a substitute.. As for Buendia let’s hope he performs good in next season for Aston villa.. I see Great hopes in nico gonzalez, he is next Claudio Lopez the way he is performing, just finishing what it matter for him.. But this is his first big tournament, he will do good believe me.. Locelso he looks good for first 60 minutes, he should develop his fitness more to be a perfect player..parades substitution sends a good message to him that he is not untouchable.. So he will give more on his performance now.. Today’s substitution were fine.. But scaloni should not try some day joquain next day angel Correa.. They should also believe that they are regular substitutes which will give them big confidence.. The big thing in the end is stay with same team so that they can have confidence in themselves.. Come on scaloni come on Argentina

    • Bro i respect you view but Otamendi….????The penalty was his fault if he intercepted the ball then Argentina will win the game..Chille does not have any clear cut chance. But i hope Argentina will improve & Cuti is coming so we have something about to hope good defending from next match…❤️❤️❤️🇦🇷🇮🇳

      • Yes you are right Fahim.. Still give some time as Romero comes back.. Romero will calm down the defense… Then we can think about ota.. Talking about the penalty the ball bounces back of the EMI and tagli was unable to cope with the bounce back ball and it was not a clear penalty as well.. I don’t see much fault of ota.. But we should be calm.. Lets hope Romero comes back with total fitness then we can consider otas position.. Vamos Argentina

    • U r bastard@ Bimal… Firstly be humbe, don’t curse anyone. And, before cussing others, understand football, understand tactics, watch European Football.

      • Shaan may be you are from same category of haters as well.. Thats why you took that word personally.. Otherwise I am referring to those so called fans who are here just to bash Argentina.. They don’t have any view point.. Just here to criticize Argentina and create mess around here.. I am watching European football for around 30 years now.. Did you saw yesterday’s match of Sweden.. They were just 11 players there standing in the ground and made 31 complete passes when Spain had 240 passes.. 85% possession for Spain in whole match . So everyone there is also not good.. What tactics you are talking about btw.. Even star studded Manchester city lost the final against Chelsea with pep guardiola.. Where was the tactics there.. What message did that loss of pep gives.. Don’t tinker too much with the team.. First build your Starting 11 then make one or two change.. But why I am explaining to you? You have no point.. Just a word bastard hurt you as if it was made towards you.. Vamos argentina

        • @Bimal, I am a devout Argentina fan since my childhood. I never saw Argentine team playing like day labourers. We scored 1 goal from open play in last 3 matches. I know it’s difficult, but Chile was depleted. Alexis was not there and with Messi we could not beat them. Accept the reality that Scaloni is a shit coach.

          Because the players are individually good, they are playing very well in their clubs. But, Scaloni is not able to use them. That means Manager has problem in identifying best tactic.

          I am mad about that. People wanted MAD, Messi-Auguero-Dybala. In last copa we played brilliantly in 3rd place match. This time the Scaloni genius haven’t picked Dybala in the squad.

          Now, think yourself…

          • Well Argentina had Marcelo bielsa at their helm in 2002 world cup.. We were knocked out in the league’s phase.. How?? How old are you.. I can review that world cup if you want.. Bielsa was hell of a tinker as well.. In the vital game against Sweden he made quite a few changes.. No veron and he brought aimar.. What happened?? Argentina drew and knocked out.. That’s what happen when you have the best tactician of the generation at your services but too much chop and change cost us.. 2006 wc pekerman changed riquelme in vital stage of quarter when Argentina was leading against Germany.. What happened?.. In last minutes Germany equalized and Argentina lost in penalty.. Sampaoli was not bad.. What happened in 2018?. He changed team like he had new starting 11 in every other match.. What happened?? Argentina was disaster in 2018..how we did well in 2014.. Sabella a mediocre manager they said but he had one set of team.. He even managed to get the best of old demichelis who was superb.. So for Argentina its about maintaining same team.. It’s a hell of a difficult job..we cannot afford new manager now just 1 year before wc.. Again another manager will come and chop and change and again we will be in ground zero position.. Hope he will be make some good change as the team progresses in the tournament but not wholesome change as Sampaoli did.. Vamos Argentina

  35. Don’t blame nico! Yeah, I know that he missed couple of chances but that’s considerable… We know what type of character he showed in November, but I think this is the high time scaloni should use another no. 9… Bcz lautaro has been missing opportunities since November…. So for mw the next match’s xi against Uruguay should be following :

    Emi
    Molina-Lisandro-Romero-Tagli/Acuna
    De Paul paredes celso
    Messi Aguero Nico

    You can’t change the starting xi in every single match like Sampaoli did in 2018… The co ordination of the team was up to the mark until Paredes and Celso was substituted off…. And hope for thw best…. There is still chance to win the title.. In’sha’Allah

    • did u see the last 3 matched argentina played. it was failure of DM parades. he is useless. whenever you are using backpass whole paressure will goes to back line. backpass is a problematic.

  36. To me, we played better than the last two qualifiers. There were less tense moments and we created so many chances. I am disappointed only with the missed goal scoring chances and superstar DiMaria’s final outputs. Emi, Messi, Ota, Nico etc. played decently. Team chemistry and fighting spirit seems to be good. I think we will up our performances going forward.

  37. I am shocked at some of the criticism of De Paul this week. People are saying he is a bad dribbler, and for one reason or another he has not provided that in these games (may be something to do with the change in opponents from Serie A), but he was #1 for completed dribbles this season in Italy. I do not blame him for trying to dribble, it is not like Foyth trying to dribble out of defense in the last minute of the game.

  38. A Correa needs to be given a chance. The guy had 9 goals + 9 assists, won La liga , only 26 and could have help Lautaro/Aguero upfront. Nico is basically just another Lautaro, with Angel Correa, we will have winger forward (like Lavezzi) who can press and forced defenders to make some errors,

  39. My analysis on the game
    This game was calling out for papu Gomez or even buendia these two could have given speed and intensity as super subs in the final stages.
    The lack of quick movements was also pointed by messi as chile were easily able to organize due to slow passage of play .

    The team needs to score from open play during this group stage to boost their confidence for the knockout stages.

    Lautaro needs to end his goal drought quickly and get back to form

    I wouldn’t blame Nicolas Gonzalez much as he is still getting back to match fitness due to a lengthy injury layoff. His speed and movements always caused concerns for the Chilean defence.

    Lo celso is getting back to his usual best but due to lack of match fitness couldn’t maintain the intensity which he showed in the first half.

    De Paul was okay

    Paredes needs to get more consistent one match he plays like prime Xavi and the other match he is a side passer

    Montiel was okay did connect well with messi and de Paul on the right flank but might need to improve his defending though

    Martinez quarta was a complete shitstorm I would prefer pezzella and otamendi partnership over this guy playing . Cristian Romero needs to get to full fitness quickly .

    Tagliafico was okay didn’t offer anything in attack but in defence he did make some quality tackles the tackle on vidal was a bit rash and he should have put his experience to good use in that moment.

    Otamendi was solid and should maintain this solidness throughout the tournament.

    Emi Martinez was okay he could have reacted quickly to the penalty rebound but it was also the player’s fault as they didn’t track Vargas run.such lapse in concentration will cost argentina the trophy .

  41. I came to say that Lautaro needs another striker and I am finding a lot of comments saying the same thing. He does best playing as a second striker off of a more physical presence that is reliable with shooting like Lukaku. Coincidentally this is what I have been asking for every time I come up with a starting 11: a strike partnership! Unfortunately Aguero’s fitness is a doubt and Alario is out, plus Dybala not being called up to provide another option in a potential partnership (not sure he should be paired with Lautaro). I do not think he is entirely reliable as a lone striker. We will see how this plays out against Uruguay but it should either be Lautaro with a partner or no Lautaro. His linking play is also ideal for another striker

    • They way Argetina play they can not afford to play 2 CFs i would rather like to partner Aguero with Nicolas Gonzalez . Argentina doesnt need to sacrifice 1 player for lord Lautaro.

      • In copa 19, we played aguero & lautaro together from 2nd or 3rd game & it worked in tournament. We will be narrow on width.. but effective inside box. Challenge now is aguero is nowhere near that match sharpness to last 90mins.
        Maybe another combination is messi as a false nine with nico g & angel correa as lw & rw. Basically capitalize angel correa’s form. Challenge here is messi then needs to play more upfront while he clearly enjoys going deep & landing those lethal passes ( i personally like that approach). I still feel lautaro will click in tournament & just a matter of time.

        • What is this fixation on angel he is the most inconsistent player you likely to see and Joaquin had the better season

          • Angel has enjoyed good form this season at the end for Atleti and he at the very least should be a good depth/bench option

  42. I watched many inter last season i thought Lautaro might perform well as a lone striker but it was quite opposite Everytime Lukaku was removed from the equation Lautaro became so tame, predictable and useless.
    Nicolas Gonzalez had done some great runs behind the defence just finishing was missing there.

    Scaloni was an idiot as always he substituted his best midfielder lo celso so early and took 80 minutes to sub off lautaro 68 minutes to sub off effectless paredes.

  43. Scaloni did not make right choice for some players. Montiel,Quarta Martinez, Palacios are the weakest point. Foyth Dybla and Buendai should have been selected.
    Scaloni needs to understand that River Plate based these player are nothing in front of European talent.

    • you are wrong not always european based player is good .. river based player julian alvarez is not bad.. and in south american club football i think river is one of the top club who performs regularly.. i would not mind if he also choose angileri from river

  44. argentina played good a lot of chances created unfortunately none of those converted. the problem is a lot of trash talk generated in this site.. nico and lautaro both misses some clear chances if nico misses hundred of chances i will still says he is must for nt.. bcs he gives a lot of addition to team.. now about lautaro he misses at least one clear chances and as a striker he must convert them but he didn’t do that… but asking for lautaro head it is big crime why? bcs many thought as striker workrate is no use but moving here and there and searching for chances is complete nuinces for opposition it’s increase more goalscoring chances.. you can have goal scoring striker who sits back for the chances he has to depends on others .. and in this case you can completly nullify a striker… lautaro best point is he is little workhorse who always run for his chances and sometimes help the defence… lautaro is not useless he is always useful in game plan if there is any use as sub or regular starter… if lautaro chance misses by aguero people will ask for aguero head or dybala head etc etc.. lautaro second miss was awful must convert that to goal but still this time argentina plays good not best but good… argentina needs to look at there defence and wings backs.. this is there lackings…

    paredes sometimes play good sometimes not… argentina lackings in there defence…
    and i don’t understand why scaloni didn’t play lisandro today

  45. When I said the last Draw against Colombia it was players fault not scaloni – some people ridiculed the comment. This match is another example of player fuck-ups causing us the match. Scaloni made the right moves and ofcourse our beloved Messi saved the day but Lautaro was erratic, Tagliafico was sub-par and Parades was largely absent. Messi, Otamendi and LoCelso had a terrific game.

    Again the best of the best teams have consistency in play..not just good coaches..

    That being said we played very well compared to the qualifiers. Only way is up. Waiting for our first win this copa.

  46. If I was scolani
    I will try this….

    Emi Martinez.

    Romero.,……sensi………licha Martinez…..

    De Paul.,……..Santiago ascasiber…..lo celso.,…… Buendia……. Nico Gonzalez

    Messi……….. Dybala
    Lack of the qualityfull RB & LB
    3-5-2
    is best formation for us

  47. Emi Martinez

    Molina….. Romero…..licha Martinez/otamendi……. tagliafico

    Lo celso……Guido Rodríguez……de Paul/ palaciosis

    Messi

    Julian Alvarez………… Nico Gonzales

    Plz plz plz scolani bring this xi

    We can beat anyteam in this Copa

    Bcz when Guido Is there
    De Paul get full freedom to attack

    If Guido there we can see best of de paul

  48. I would take Alvaro Morata over Lautaro martinez anyday. This is no striker no footballer he is something else. For Nicolas Gonzalez IMO he deserves one more chance.

    • Nico Gonzalez played better his position was good right place at right time. He just missed chances but he should play next match. Overrated Lautaro Martinez should be axed from the playing 11.

  49. 1,scaloni get out quickly, lautaro martinez should be bench since he is short. slow.and miss many chances. otamendi is responsible for the draw .

    2, Buendia ocampos.gaich foyth should be recruited. we need a tall central forward

    3，buendia ,lo celso de paul combination with palacios substitute

    4, Gonzalez replace tagliafico

    5,.three man defense with Gonzalez. they are foyth ,romero and matinez quarta

    6,paredes is useless ,de paul can be the one .

    GK Martinez
    Defense : Foyth ,romero ,quarta
    midfield : buendia ,de paul ,lo celso ,Gonzalez
    forward : messi ,Gaich ,Joaquin correa

    • I know people will get onto me about this but Girotti from River would provide a good option as he is a reliable finisher that is tall and muscular. His conversion numbers are great. Gaich at the very least though. We need a large presence in the box

      • Yes olive very valid observation. One of these the 3 spots ( Alvarez / 4th GK / Dominguez ) could have been replaced by either Gaich or even Girotti . One big physical CF would have been a welcome addition to squad. Goals scored in last WCQs & Copa games are not always the best players of European league. Lot of local league players have been scoring. Releasing that profile of player in the 70th/80th minute is maybe what is missing in our overall tactics. The 4th GK selection is gonna hurt for a lot of time.

        • Agreed with what you say about other local players scoring. It feels that even though we have a bunch of European based and even world class players that all it takes is a single Vidal surrounded by mostly local players to cause danger to us. What about our 95% European based players with one local player? We still drew. What matters is the system above all and since Alvarez and Armani don’t necessarily seem to add anything to it Girotti or Gaich would add needed physicality and a target in the box. By the way Gaich’s scoring record with the u23’s is impressive, correct me if I’m wrong but I heard yesterday that out of 18 starts he scored 15 goals.

        • what is the the problem with icardi. for me messi is causing the unbalance of team. lautaro does not defend nor so meesi. dybala + icardi + lautaro/nico is the way to go

  50. Argentinas curse is local league pressure & a coach without balls. 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. Scaloni should have used the substitutes 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.
    # Montial, LMQ are not national team materials
    # Palacios, Lautaro Martinez, Tagloficio are par below expectation.
    Any results better than last Copa is bonus especially when seeing how other teams play.
    Brazil is a solid TEAM agree or not, Wot we could create over the years they did.

  52. VAR always choosing against Arg. I think VAR teams trying to get a chance to fell Arg.Emi stopped Pen. but others not followed the game.
    That VIDAL is look likes a bulldog.He is a good actor to get free kicks..Not good day for Nico and Lautaro.I think Scaloni o can try a speedy tactics today bcz chilins r without Sanchez..

  54. thank god! at least we don’t lose a match…. senesi, buendia and dybala are great miss…. argentina is the 4rth tier team in s. america beside brazil, uruguay and chili… even colombia and equator can easily play with this team…..
    what a player we used to have…. what a team we used to watch now any european team can easily beat this team…

    • Hi Sudhirfadi I know you are frustrated. But to call Argentina a fourth tier team in S America is laughable.
      In the qualifier we are 2nd and in World Rankings we are 8.
      I dont believe in rankings but to be in the top 10 in World Rankings, atleast you have to be better than a 4 th tier team from S America. Also we are undefeated for more than 2 years now. lol
      Listen.. teams have there ups and down but we are very close to the desired team. We are creating goals and we are drawing (not losing) because of our mistakes. If we tweek the starting 11 we can even win the Copa. Brazil is in great form but if we have the right 11 we can upset them too.

  55. Scaloni is a peace of shit and his team is playing like a B-division team. All the local league players that were hyped by some of idiots in this section are below average at best. They should be nowhere near this team along with Scaloni.

  56. Game notes:
    The issues I have are in finishing and controlling midfield ….
    •We have no finishers other than Messi and Aguero… which means Kun must start..
    • Gonzalez and Lautaro missed EASY GOALS! Nico twice!!! And DePaul froze up on that genius pass from Messi !
    • dimaria is a must sub off the bench every game
    • DePaul lacks composer ! I like him but he is replaceable. The last 25 minutes of the game our midfield had NO control… or tempo!
    •Molina, I haven’t seen enough of him defensively but is more effective offensively than montiel
    • tagliafico played well today… to my dismay

    Once again I bitter taste in our mouths…we should have won with 4/5 goals…
    We are improving though…and expect every game to get better .. Emiliano is an upgrade, romero will be back soon. Wish we had buendia because we are lacking something in midfield. But I’m excited and they always give me enough to believe yet leave me wanting more !!!!
    I TRULY BELIEVE WE ARE ABOUT TO BREAK OUT AND TRIUMPH !!!

  57. I am optimistic after the game…But I really don’t know why scaloni is not starting lisandro Martinez…and I really don’t know why scaloni kept palacios and sent away buendia who has 15 goals and 16 assists this and also had 7 assists and was in the top 3 for creating most chance in PL last season

    • Do u really think Palacios cost this match? Buendia didn’t play a single match with these group of players… Do you think he has any magic wand…
      Arg biggest problem is their defense & mistakes r consistent in all 3 matches…

      Arg played much better against Colombia & today in attacking front…

      • all i am saying is buendia is a better attacking mid than palacios…he would have created a lot more than palacios does when we are all out in attack

        • I seriously doubt that Buendia would have made a significant difference… Playing in Second division is different & at International level is different…

          It looks he didn’t even impress in the trainings whereas players like C Romero got place in starting 11…. Buendia was not even on bench for the qualifiers too… Definitely can’t take a chance in major tournaments… I think even A Correa got his first chance under Scaloni in this round of qualifiers…
          Hope after Copa he gets a call & impresses the coaching staff…
          I don’t think entire coaching staff r stupid to ignore if he is such a talent… leave alone scaloni… Aimar etc r there….

          • 2nd division team Leeds is in top half in Premiere league. Buendai is much better than Palacios. Palacios is also shit never saw anything in him. He is a school boy in front of Buendai

  58. I have not read any comments yet but I will say simply what I think. For one I am frustrated at the result because it was such fine margins that prevented the win particularly in the penalty. For one Otamendi should have cut out the pass and I know for a fact that Romero would have intercepted it or at least cleared it. Romero has very impressive interception numbers especially for playing in a possession heavy Atalanta. Secondly if Tagliafico had not kicked him between the legs nothing would have happened because Vidal missed it so wildly. And again the effect of the ball hitting the post fell perfectly for the chileans. We also missed many chances such as Lautaro and Gonzalez. We created more chances than the other games and also Chile had no clear chance for goals except for the penalty. Interestingly enough I don’t think Martinez has had to make a proper flying save yet for Argentina. A problem I have with the game is the way we returned for the second half, immediately playing defensively. We are Argentina, we should be a country that is looking for goals even after being 3-0 up. The substitutions were somewhat questionable, Lo Celso was the best player on the pitch and we could have used Licha and Molina to come on sooner who provided more than Montiel immediately (although I do not think Molina should start because of his defensive frailties). Di Maria did play fairly well and this is exactly what I mean when I say he provides a lot as a sub. Kun could have come on earlier but with the appalling pitch conditions it is understandable. I am watching Bolivia Paraguay and the pitch is slightly better but still bad. Now Uruguay is the game we must focus on and the most difficult in our group based on player quality. If we improve by the next game at the rate we are going, that is unless fine margins define the game like the last ones

      • We ran out of steam after the first. And for second half – we do not have fit players..all our subs can play 15 mins only…so Scaloni had to stretch quite a bit his starting 11..this is reality..

        There is always going to be…”If only….”

    • For the penalty, Quarta is out of place, missed his tracking player & failed to coverup the pace which allowed to make that pass/chance… Don’t know y he was so high on the pitch for that play… LMQ had a distrastrous match…

      After the penalty shot was taken, Arg players were ball watching & slow to react… particularly Tagliafico & N Gonzalez who were ahead of Vargas.. This is consistent in all the set piece across the three matches…. Opponents teams are fast to react…

      All the three matches Arg should have won & all r defensive mistakes which cost the match. The defence should be blamed, not the other players…..

      Lautaro & Gonzalez missed easy chances & that happens for every forward player in a odd match… Hope & pray these won’t happen in knockout matches…

      Wait until the tournament ends to comment anything on Scaloni…. His defense team shall be questioned….

      • As they say, a good defense wins titles. While Romero was not able to play this match at the very least Licha should have been a starter. He provides more security and better marking than Quarta. I hope next game Scaloni goes with them but I am sure it will be Romero-Otamendi. We can only half celebrate. Shame about our players not reacting because the goal was way too easy for them to tap in.

        • I am still confident we will bounce back. Weak foot in front of goal is what we need to fix immediately. Nico g i think was just rusty on finishing after long spell of no competitive football. He moved well for sure which is encouraging . As locelso & nico g improve on their match fitness we will come out stronger. I am only worried about their fitness holding good in next 30days. Still trusting lautaro to deliver the goods while last 3 matches has been a let down. Lmq should be way down the list of selection compared to licha & pezella. I am sure scaloni wld have realized it now.

  59. Somewhat I feel the River fantasy is killing our NT. I am a River fan. Always was. But what is going on these days? – LMQ, Palacios, Armani, Montiel all very average. Only person I could take now is Gallardo 🙂

    BTW, can someone explain to me what does Palacios actually do? Here in Mundo people salivate on his name. I want to understand.

    This is not a question from this game. I think he actually did well today. But in general what does he do? I have now watched about 20 odd games between Leverkusen, River and NT. Give me a midfield player he is close to in terms of style and responsibilities. I am old enough and have seen many midfielders in my life, trust me, a lot. what is he – Mascherano? lucho? Riquelme? Veron? Simone? Aimar? Cambiasso? Redondo? Lampard? Kante? DeBruyne? Mancini? Iniesta? Xavi? Alonso? Modric? Socrates? Hagi? Stoichkov? A #5, #8, #10?

    I am not complaining, but trying to understand, what is he? Closest I can think of is poor man’s Lucho Gonzalez (a river player I liked). Why is he rated so highly here by some of us?

    • Palacios is a creative attacking midfielder. Yes beside Lo Celso, he can create opportunities. Palacios is still young. He had some good connection with Messi. Atm he is a good option off the bench to sub Lo Celso.
      I cannot compare him with anyone yet. But the kid has future if he can go to a club who will use him more regularly that will do him lots of good.

    • Yes Palacios is shit Emi Buendai would have been much better in his place. I do not like River Plate based plate except Angilleri and Alvarez. This River Plate love of Scaloni is killing national team. European based player plays more competitive league so they are much better. I do not know when Scaloni will learn. A single bad choice can ruin the whole tournament.Messi needs to speak he should not let that happen these local clubs are killing national team

    • do you want a player similar to palacios…his name is kranevitter…came out as a big prodigy…played for atletico and then flopped…I’m not saying palacios is bad…but we used to have players like riquelme, Cambiasso, mascherano, banega…now ppl are saying big things about palacios…imo scaloni should have kept buendia and sent back palacios…he is in the team just cause he used to play for river

      • Palacios has won everything there’s is to win in South America at the age of 20 buendia has not won shit and has only thrived in div 2 he barely even started 50% of the matches for the worst team in bpl and didn’t score a single goal while in div 1. Plus this clearly shows the lack of intelligence in this forum when you people are comparing a CENTER MIDFIELDER to a WINGER!!!!!!!! THINK PEOPLE BEFORE YOU WRITE PLEASE!!!!!!!

  60. GUYS THE WHOLE TEAM IS NOT WORLD CLASS WE ARE ArGENTINA !!! We need to be as good as Brasil :

    – Lo celso/de paul/parades is not Veron, Requilme, Astrada, Almeyda, Aimar, simeone, mascherano. WHAT ARE WE DOING ? We are Argentina wake up stop saying couple changes will fix the problem who are these PLAYERS ? lo celso barely starts can you start a game without VERON RIQUELME come on guys wake up the only real player left is MESSI everyone else can be replace by the next 10 players

  61. Watching Bolivia vs Paraguay as we speak, two VAR calls one was PK and the other was not. The 2nd where the Bolivian GK tripped the Paraguayan inside the box and didn’t even get the ball BUT no PK! but ours was, such bullshit

    • Saw the same thing. Lack of consistency is what pisses me off the most. Especially when it happens within a single game for a certain team

  62. We are not gonna miss out on the knock outs with this draw. We will play in the final but we have to do few things next match.

    -If Romero is not fit we should bring in Lisandro MARTINEZ
    – Molina should start
    – I like Latauro ( I blame the bad pitch for his misses) I believe he will deliver in the knock outs but he is down on confidence right now so lets start KUN AGUERO against Uruguay and bring Latauro off the bench to sub off kun.
    – Bring ADM off the bench again
    – Bring Acuna off the bench

    I think Nico Gonzales should start he is great in movements.
    Otamendi is ok if he partners with Romero but no LMQ and Montiel please.

    If we do these we will play the Final.

    —————-Emi—————
    Molina-Romero-Otam-Tag
    -Depaul-Paredes-Locelso-
    Messi—-—Aguero—–Nico

  63. Always said Lautaro Martinez is over rated. He can not score his finishing is poor he is Higuain 2.0.That is why I said Dybla would have been much better, Montiel did not look good that is why Foyth is needed. E. Palacios is also overrated I see nothing special in him, Papu Gomez should have come. Angle Di Maria looks good N. Gonzalez was good he missed some chances but his movement was good and he tried hard to win balls.

    • I agree Lautaro Martinez can not score. Dybala is not great either. The whole team needs to be replaced. I can not beleive we are going with these players we are argentina give me some street players.

      • Dybla is the best I always feared Juve with Dybla in line up. Whole team need to be replaced what weed are you smoking get rid of that shit.

  64. A team that can not win games will not win champion chips is very simple. You guys can analyze all day but at the end consistency is key. Man city lost few games at the end then they lost the champions league to a more stable chelsea. And that is a fact this argentina team is probably as good as equador. Brasil been playing world class comparing to Argentina. It is been since the world cup final and we are hoping to be the team that lost the final

  65. Let’s be clear we can’t change complete team overnight. It is not going to work. Midfield should be leave like same because Leandro is younger than guido and palacios can come as substitute.
    It is no point to try otamendi any more. He dose not have resilience to be a CB. Montiel is bad in both defence and attack. Lautaro in a bad form so he should come as a substitute of augers for the time being.
    E Martinez
    Molina Romero Quarta/l Martinez. Tagliafico
    Parades
    De Paul. Lo cello
    Messi Gonzalez
    Aguero

    • Man stop kidding your self where the young tevez and messi on this team ? Argentina during the worse days they had players like Ortega, Canigia, Batistuta, Crespo, saviola, ect… there is nothing. Lo celso barealy makes tottenham first team. Who is gonzalez ? is all below par and the results reflect the truth

    • Hey Hasan,

      Scaloni or this team is not meeting first time..most of the players have been Scaloni’s squad for quite a bit..except a few..

      But with that said, .Forwards needs a goal or 2 to get their form- it will come soon..

      The players called in the defense cannot be fixed…they are average at best.

      Fix the midfield – is the way to go..there is potential as the players are good…it is just they are not fit..

      • I do not think the midfield is good. Lo celso is bad. is he Veron ?
        Parades is he Pablo Aimar or Simeone ? is he almeyda ? Is he riquelme ? Astrada ? I mean who are we comparing against you guys are driving me nuts. Lo celso does not start for Tottenham for a reason. Can you start a game without Veron or Riquelme or Simeone or Macherano this is a joke

        • LoCelso was one of the first in Mourinho’s team. He even said..he will build team around LoCelso. Injury is the reason he’s not playing there regularly.

        • I’ll give you Simeone, Aimar, Vernon and Riquelme but Matias Almeyda and Leonardo Arstrada were nothing special…Stop reaching. LoCelso is a great player and he set up a lot of chances….

  66. Whoever saying we’ve been playing well,are kidding themselves

    It’s not true we have been rubbish in all 3 matches

    We are so slow and predictable

    A good team with a good coach would of won all 3 matches quiet comfortably

    • True… The midfield were sloppy. Absolute shamble. Paredes as DM is causing hole. No coherence there especially in second half…

        • Just remember we were the only team to ever be beating France at any point in the WC. That was with Sampaoli. In fact a couple of changes that game could have won it if we had a better goalkeeper and played Dybala and Lo Celso instead of Meza or Pavon.

  67. Lucas Martinez Quarta vs Chile:

    – 90 minutes played
    – 0 ball recoveries
    – Two fouls and a yellow card
    – 12 times possession lost

    Clearly he is not cut out for Selection… Even he is, i don’t think he is ready….he need to hv form for a year in Fiorentina then he should get a call…look at romero or lisandro or emi, they played well almost every match for year and two, so they can replicate that on field and show the confidence… Montiel should be out too….

    • Lucas Martinez and Montiel were average while in River Plate as well – but the midfield and forwards use to control and convert so they also looked good…

    • LMQ seems still raw. Should have called Senesi instead. Also we need to change RB position for sure otherwise same team would do with some quick and crisp passing. We are too predictable

    • Wow those numbers are incredibly bleak. Senesi not being in any two of the national teams (senior and u23) is very very odd. I do agree he should have another season in Serie A to even be considered for minutes.

  68. Lesson learned from today’s match:

    Mascherano irreplaceable we miss him so much

    Defense is super slow and Terrible we need a monster Defensive midfielder like Masche/Kante/Casemiero … Etc to protect our Backline

    Parades/Lo Celso /DePaul wouldn’t work its so clear, there’s no Balance is there ?

    Scaloni has a lot to prove it’s too early to judge him but to me it’s clear that the job is too big for him he can’t cut it

    Finally I am a No 1 critic of Tagliafico, the worst player I’ve seen wearing Argentina’s Jersey, quiet frankly I am surprised he’s made it Professional ,he can’t do F**k all,

    Can someone tell me apart from his back passes what else is he Good at?

    He can’t Defend or attack he can’t cross,he can’t head the ball he can’t Shoot, he’s got no physical Presence whatsoever, he’s more concerned about his pretty hair than improving his football skills.

    I wouldn’t want him even in my Sunday league team

    • Paredes needs to be replaced by Guido… Double pivot should be Guido and De Paul. Then Messi infront. On the right ADM, Left Gonzalez/J. Correa and middle Lautaro. Lo Celso can play instead of ADM and then messi will be on Right. We left out Dybala. Which will be costly.

      • man the whole team is bad I can get 10 street players from argentina and they will beat them these are boring academy players with no flare. I can replace them easily with the next 10 players

  70. This team is starting to break out….if Nico hadn’t been out so long for Stuttgart he would have easily finished off those chances..lautaro should start taking his chances ..he is missing a lot these days…i am starting to believe in this team….we did not have the luck In front of the goal…the only negative I could see is our defense…hope romero returns soon and montiel needs to join a club like sevilla or roma if he wants to take his career to the next step

    • Hey Gurusevilla – it is all about confidence and form..both Lautaro and Nico are bit scratchy and missed fairly easy chances..

      They should know to score themselves,,but if you are not confident, then this happens…passing the ball to everyone..

  71. Lucas Martinez Quarta vs Chile:

    – 90 minutes played
    – 0 ball recoveries
    – Two fouls and a yellow card
    – 12 times possession lost

  72. Given the tournanent format where only 1 out of 5 teams would be eliminated, even a draw against Uruguay will not be end of the world, but given our terrible goalscoring abilities, we might end up at bottom if Scolani doesnt replace the forwards.

    Anyone notice Messi gave Lautaro a deathstare after Lautaro backpassed the ball to him ? That should be a hint for Scolani.

  73. I kind of feel something right now. It’s not that I’m being idiotic or being nostalgic of previous things but somewhere, at some place Higuain might be sitting and grinning with his eyes closed.

    I remember when he gave a very mammoth and realistic advise to lautaro just after his retirement.
    “That he should be more concentrated and have to keep calm because once you start pulling blank stats with the Argentina team, you will be scrutinized and scorned from each and every angle. The Argentina no 9 shirt is too heavy and it takes brain to survive under those circumstances.”

    Higuain was very true. Although Lautaro had started his Argentina scoring career on a fine note but in no time he will start facing the heat of this shirt. It’s inevitable.

  75. That was a BS PK call but that always seems to be the case with ARG.
    They should have scored another 2 goals and the game would have been done and dusted…..i mean how many chances are you going to get in front of the goal to score?? This was Morata-like for Spain.
    The Pk is stopped but you get a free shot at the goal…….again, that shitty luck.
    I would play Kun from the start for the next game if he is fit along with either Nico or Lautaro but not both at the same time.

    • Hey Dfox1942,

      That was close enough for a penalty – I was watching the highlights, taglifico was very slow and should have cleared the ball..but the Chile player touched the ball with the leg up 6 ft..

      It was a close one if you see it..May be Emi Martinez was little late to react and may be could have tried to stop the header…but that is something he would learn..no fault of his..

  78. We played a lot better than last two matches. Lautaro and Nico both could have score 2 goals each. Except for defence, we should play the same team next match.

    • I wish Scaloni won’t rush Aguero to the team..and then out in KO due to injury. Qualifying to ko is sure. So be patient with the team. But surely improvement needed in overall defense.

  79. After long time argentina found a iron man under goal post….
    best wishes for emi…
    hope he will give a long time service for his nation…

  81. Honestly guys, I am disappointed, still not optimistic,even though there are good signs and lot to improve in the team, the chances missed by Lautaro and Nicolas Gonzalez made me frown and flip over things infront of me. That Messi Free Kick was enough to satisfy me, I really am happy for him, but we could’ve had a really comfortable win tonight, won’t comment on defending for now, I think we lost our game when we missed those sitters still….. Vamos Argentina

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