Gio Lo Celso might require surgery, decision to be made after test

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Gio Lo Celso might require surgery with a decision to be made after one last test.

Lo Celso will have one more test on him and he might require surgery on his leg. According to Gastón Edul, a decision will be made and if he will be operated on, he will be out for more than eight weeks.

As of right now, there is still nothing confirmed.

213 Comments

  1. Some discussed about the performance of the team without lo celso. But lo celso started all the matches for Argentina against quality oppositions. In this streak, lo celso played 1 match against Italy, 2-3matches against Brazil, 3 matches against Uruguay, then 3 matches against Colombia( 1 is without Messi)3 matches against chile. Apart from that 1 home qualifiers against Brazil and 1 away qualifier with Uruguay rest of all lo celso played good to outstanding plays. Without lo celso I think we played better against chile( without Messi)in qualifiers and played avg against Ecuador and good copa against Paraguay. So my question is how can players like papu or palacios or Nico can maintain their rhythm from the start against big teams is Unknown.

  2. Cuti vs Licha who is better?

    As a huge fan of Cuti, it is no secret I have watched 100% of his minutes (including friendly games) ever since we discovered him. This year, I also watch Licha closely too as he has been a revelation for MU too. Who is better between the 2? Well easy to say some Licha fans here say Licha is better. Some Cuti fans say Cuti is better. Here is my take.

    Cuti’s case:
    Rodrigo De Paul was asked a month ago, who is the most underrated player in the world. His answer is Cuti Romero. He added, “He is a very very good player”. Messi was believed to want Cuti to join him in Barca before things did not work out with him in Barca. Last season Cuti was a revelation for the Spurs. He also rose to the occasion too as he played better in big games such as against Liverpool or City where he was the MOM in both matches. This season, he has not yet been as good as he sometimes got a mild injury and he played his worst games against both Licha’s MU and the league leader Arsenal.

    Cuti style of play is very very old school. He is what a perfect “non sense defender” is all about. He detects the danger before the danger actually happens, that’s what special about him. He is a very front footed defender, meaning that he has a tendency to intercept the ball before the one that he marks receive the ball. That’s to answer why his interceptions number is off the chart (especially when playing for Argentina). He is not the biggest defender in the world, but his body strength is marvelous for someone his size. His aerial ability is good. Not among the best in the world but definitely above average.

    His one on one defense is good as usual. No one can hardly pass him. His tackling is among the best I have ever seen since Mascherano who is for me the best tackler of Argentina. He is not that much of a yellow card automatic too as he was earlier in his career. For the Spurs he has 2-3 yellows only so far in all competition this year. What is good about him also, he is very calm when under pressure. Against a team like City where they usually pressed every player including him, he can still have a very high passing accuracy. He does not panic and just clear the ball to anywhere. He still passes the ball to his teammates under pressure.

    His weakness: His set pieces aerial defense needs a bit more work. In EPL he got beaten up a couple of times from corner. That’s because in EPL he is considered quite small for a defender and he had to mark players taller than him most of the time. He also sometimes gets overly too aggressive therefore leaving the space open if he mistime his tackle, but this rarely happens, I guarantee you. Also he needs to improve his concentration, sometimes he got beaten in the dying minutes due to lack of concentration.

    Licha Martinez case:

    Standing at 5’9. MU fans now go as far as this. This is one of their comments: “I don’t care if he is 5’9 or 4’11 (157 cm) as long as he plays like that, that’s fine to me”. A lot of MU fans believe that he is a perfect defender. Some says that he is the reincarnation of Baresi and Cannavaro or Puyol, 3 of the best under 5’10 defenders of all time.

    Licha rarely makes a mistake. He doesn’t “gamble” that much in tackling unlike Cuti, but he is also not one of those who just sits deep and just making standing tackle only. He is a hybrid of a non sense defender and a ball playing defender. He’s got that perfect balance. Some say he is weak in the air. i say he is one of those smart defenders who somehow can avoid the opponents exposing his weakness in the air by always trying to be in the right position before he has to battle in the air. The only time people in EPL saw him weak in the air was his debut game only. After that, he looked really good. Not because he is that good in the air, but because his positioning is that good that he rarely got caught off position even when having to deal with high balls.

    His marking is top notch. His defensive awareness is among the best I have ever seen. He plays with a lot of energy and passion. His passing is amazing as we all know.

    His weakness? It is hard to detect his weakness. No wonder why MU considers him a perfect defender. Maybe his size, but again it doesn’t really matter much.

    Who is better? Last year Cuti was still better. I would say this year equal. Cuti is more of a aggressive one. Argentina NEVER conceded goals in 14 games or so when Cuti, Otamendi, and Emi playing together. And Cuti never played worse than a rating of 6 with Argentina. It says a lot about who he is. Licha has just gotten promoted lately by Scaloni. He is more unproven when it comes to playing for the national team, but very soon we will witness arguably the greatest center duo we have ever had in our history in Cuti and Licha! I mean all those great defenders we had in the past, we usually had one at a time. Now we have 2.

    This is how I rate them (without being biased)
    Tackling Cuti 9 Licha 8
    Marking Cuti 9 Licha 9
    Aerial Cuti 8 Licha 7
    Concentration Cuti 7 Licha 9
    Leadership Cuti 7 Licha 9
    Defensive awareness Cuti 9 Licha 9
    Passing Cuti 8 Licha 9
    Strength Cuti 9 Licha 8
    Positioning Cuti 9 Licha 9

    Style Cuti: Non sense defender
    Style Licha: Ball playing defender

    • We can’t compare them with stats coz they are almost equal in all. But I vote for lisandro. Coz for lisandro there would be always be some criticism for his height if he performs below the expectations. So he considers it as his duty to shut this critics in each and every match and play 100% of him in all matches. I rate him above cuti.

    • That’s why scaloni considering to play back 3 as ota cuti lisandro back 3 will be insane. But if we play back 4 otamendi should be constant i mean in back 4 it should be either lisandro otamendi or Romero otamendi because otamendi is a beast in aerial duel or defending corners or freekicks. So we need him in starting 11

  3. Man city again today will play without haaland. So there is a big chance Alvarez may start today’s game. He needs to score to regain his lost confidence.

  4. Villarreal has 4 matches left before wc and last match being on 13th November. This 4 matches will be vital for foyth and foyth is vital for our chances. We will be in a precarious situation if both locelso and foyth can’t make it to qatar.

  5. Replacement players like Buendia Macallister E.lamela Papu Enzo etc. these players not get enough time on the pitch with current unit. That is a major thing. Bcz locelso playing very very important role in our team.here mentioned players are talented but they are not much experienced with this team . bcz team facing tough situation now. yeah Scaloni tried but none of them not reached his expectations.

  6. Locelsos injury is going to be a burden on Messi. Defenitely it will affects Messi’s effectiveness in forward play. If dmaria with him 60%ok for Messi. Another 40 Covering these Paredes locelao DePaul. So thr is big chance to affect Messi’s play..Scaloni never or notmuch tried or rotate locelsos sub yet. This is a serious blow.

  7. My squad for wc

    emi Martinez
    rulli
    armani(due to his experience and he is a decent shot stopper)

    lisandro
    romero
    otamendi
    nehuen perez(i know scaloni will select pezella but pezella is slow that can cost us)
    tagliafico
    acuna
    molina
    foyth(if foyth is unfit thn montiel)
    medina( because he can play both as rb and cb)

    enzo
    depaul
    paredes
    guido
    papu
    mcallister( im picking him because he is good in penalties and has decent defensive output)
    buendia or almada

    messi
    lautaro
    dimaria
    alvarez
    angel Correa
    nico Gonzalez
    j.correa/simeone/alario(if dybala is fit he will take this spot)

  8. Ok I can see that panic is starting to speard here, so let me try and aleviate abit of this stress.

    I did a mini-anaylsis today after I got home, because to be honest, I too was kind of panicking when I heard about Lo Celso’s situation since most of you here know how much I value Gio as a footballer and a cog in the Argentine machine.
    Here is what I found:

    – Since the beginning of the WCQ, Gio missed a total of 9 games, only 3 of which were draws.
    – 7 of those were in the WCQ and 2 were in Copa
    – Gio was doubled by Dimaria, N.Gonzalez, Palacios, Acuna (yes, Acuna), MacAllister and Papu throughout those various 9 games.
    – of the above 6 players Palacios, N.Gonzalez and Papu were the ones who did well when doubling Celso. Palacios did particularly well when he doubled Gio in the away WCQ game to Bolivia, which was easily Palacio’s best game in the NT shirt.
    – Nico Gonzalez doubled for Celso twice and did very well in Scaloni’s 4-4-2 system where Paredes and DePaul played at the center while Maria and Gonzalez played at right and left midfield respectively.
    – Papu Gomez doubled for Celso in copa (twice) and once in the WCQ against Chile and I have to say Papu was easily best Celso double of the bunch!
    When palacios doubled for him against Bolivia at altitude, he did really well but to be honest that could’ve been a one off because I never saw Palacios play as well since, while when Nico Gonzalez doubled for Celso he did fairly well but not as well as Celso had he been there.
    However when Papu doubled for Celso it was as if nothing was missing! As if Celso’s LCM position was made for Papu and as I said before, Papu’s low center of gravity and his incredible ball playing skills allows him to easily play out of pressure when given even the smallest of space in the midfield.

    – I should note that in the last 2 WCQ against Venezuela and Equador it was MacAllister who doubled for Celso and he was AWFUL! I mean I can give Alexis abit of a break against Ecuador because it was at Quito with altitude but Alexis was equally as awful against a weak Venezuela, playing in Argentina! so if any of you are wondering why el-principe is so against Alexis it’s largely because of those abysmal performances.

    So, Conclusion:
    – Celso is an essential cog in the Argentine machine and if he is to miss the world cup then it would be a big loss, HOWEVER it would not be the end of the world and Argentina can and will manage should he miss out (I don’t think he will personally!)
    – Papu Gomez has proven in official, high pressure games (copa and WCQ) that he is more than capable of filling in for Gio. Nico Gonzalez has also shown that he can fill in that gap but that was in a 4-4-2 system and not in a 4-3-3 system (Nico doesn’t play midfield 3 afterall). Papu on the other hand filled in for Celso in both systems equally as well!

    So my dear mundo friends, I need to remind you that Celso is not out just yet but if he is then the machine that is Argentina will likely continue to churn and turn, fingers crossed.

    • Lo celso offers the right amount of security in both defense and offense. Scaloni doesn’t need to depend on other players when the formation changes. If the opponent is attacking from the start papu and di Maria at the same time would be not good especially against Mexico. We can play safe there with Nico coz Mexico has defensive errors. But in knock outs the danger is waiting. A team like Denmark would be unpredictable. I mean we must shift to 4 4 2 or 5 3 2 or 4 2 3 1 in the knock outs. Then also the attack would be for that 1 goal or 2. Not going to happen a game like against Italy. 4 3 3 would be a huge risk without a player like lo celso. And yeah it’s disturbing. With papu and di Maria the defense looks shaky and with papu and Nico the attack would be not sharp. When Nico and di Maria the play would concentrate more on flanks which is agianr our play

    • yeah definitely papu can fill up the void of locelso, only things we are worry about papu defensive aspect, and i think scaloni already seen another player thiago who bring up table as same as papu, if locelso really can’t make it then it is thiago who going to fill up that space, not macallister , and enzo is a player who may not be as equal good as gomes in creativity but he is one versatile midfielder, as i already mention “he is best described as a number eight. he is comfortable being perform different roles and tasks. he is equally effective in and out of possession. His in-possession contribution is multi-faceted with the ability to get in the box and score goals but also drop deeper and help break down low blocks. Defensively he excels in interceptions and counter-pressing”. so scaloni already have his backup player thiago, enzo

    • But papu’s defensive work is not top notch as locelso. Plus he is 34 can he sustain the whole tournament?? I doubt. Against top teams in later stage of tournament we will need high intensity pressing and defensive work but that time because of his age papu may be exhausted and also 1 big point is papu is too short. We will have messi and papu 2 short players on the pitch and acuna or tagliafico also not tall enough and if lisandro plays thats 4 players short to medium height and we may struggle to defend set peices. So im not particularly convinced about papu replacing locelso.

    • Finally somebody who understands and really watch futbol!

      You wrote all players that replaced Lo Celso in the past anytime he was available. It was spot on. I should add one more. Thiago Almada playing in his position against Honduras. He did well in limited minutes. Yes all those players were the replacements.

      For me Papu is the best replacement because he is a hybrid player of winger and a midfielder. Then Nico Gonzales made sense too because anytime he played combined with Di Maria on the right, we became deadly in both wings in 4-2-2-2. Also Nico offers good defensive work rate too. Then Acuna was playing there too, although he did not play there for quite some times already because Scaloni mostly had Lo Celso and Papu covering that area.

      Palacios played there a couple of time. Against Bolivia he was the MOM. There were times in the past where Scaloni used to think that Palacios was even better than Lo Celso, but after Copa America and due to the injuries, Palacios fell down a bit in pecking order.

      The only one who did not do well there was MacAllister. Unless you are completely biased or his grandma, it was very obvious that he did not do the job well. He also did not do the job well of replacing De Paul either against Jamaica. I would say he played even worse against Jamaica. Safe to say his versatility is overrated.

      And NO it is NOT Enzo who can only play 5. It is MacAllister. Enzo is a 5 and more. MacAllister started his career as 10, then 8, but in the end his best position is 5. Enzo is the opposite, he is a 5 but kinda like Gareth Bale who used to be just a left back. Then the coaches realize that he was too good to just be a left back, so he became a deadly left and right winger. The same as Enzo, the coaches realize that he is too good to just be a 5 as he’s got all the tools of a complete midfielder.

      I agree we did well in replacing Lo Celso, but I think we still need him.

    • Well done @mamoun elpipita and extremly good work as for me Gio is very important player for Arg Nt indeed, and there for i wish him to abroad, though forsure it might be a risk not only for Arg Nt, but also for Gio, though i know Sacaloni&Co know’s this better than anyone else and won’t TaKe any risk’s that will be foolish etc…I also of thought of Papu as the most ideal replacement and reading your post it really make’s even more Sense for Papu being the one as playing Gio’s role or hopefully in best scenario both can…?

      Though, if not Still i think Arg may need one more player more similar to Gio and Papu to cover Papu or at least give him rest at sometime’s when needed etc…

      In that case who would u think could be the most similar to Gio and Papu…?
      As i mean literally now someone playing like LCM in 4-3-3.

      If any thoughts and if u have time as i would preciate it really much to know more about if there is anyone who could be brought abroad as in case Gio won’t make it and Arg might need cover to Papu etc…

      • Thanks for the kind words Ricky and to answer your question Argentina, luckily, has several players who could do the Celso/Papu role, namely Nico Dominguez, Enzo and Thiago Almada. All 3 are excellent passers, with Dominguez also excelling at ball recovery and defense (started out as a no.5), Almada excelling at attack while Enzo seems to be an all rounder and is putting in good attacking numbers for Benefica (3 goals and 4 assists) despite playing out of position as a 5.
        In all honesty I see the ——Enzo——–Dominguez——–Almada——- trio as a possible next gen Argentine midfield post WC and if Scaloni decides to take them all (very unlikely) then they could provide real midfield cover akin to what Enzo Perez / Biglia did at 2014.
        Sadly, I see Scaloni taking MacAllister and Palacios Well ahead of Almada and Dominguez and even ahead of Enzo. Palacios afterall has been embedded into the NT since 2020 despite the fact that he was never a starter and missed many games due to injuries. MacAllister’s continued solid form in England also means that he’s likely to get selected despite of his rubbish form in the NT.
        I guess at the latter stages of the world maybe players like Palacios and Alexis will do ALOT of running and defending, helping the team to advance through defensive solidarity and hard work like what happened in 2014.

        • Thanx al lot @mamoun elpipita for once again for your answer and also for the way u wrote it as i preciate it a very much indeed!

          From those 3 names as Dominquez, Enzo and Almada i think i seen the same thing what u mean about Dominquez and Enzo as i wished i couldhad seen more of Almada too as for something made ne think of hin before i asked the question, though i left his name out as i left also another names out etc…

          Mostly for respect and secondly i just wanted and wished to hear your answer, so all the thanx for u to giving the kind of answer that i kind of wished for as in this situation i do not feel so goid obviously, because of GLC’s situation, but it is what it is and no one can’t change that, though Still wishing for miracle to happen for him and for Arg NT AKA La Seleccion !

          This season i have not seen Dominquez playing as for example i saw him in the past seasons, so i can’t say anything about his current situation as i don’t have any knowledge on that subject, but if he is playing like in the past and is fit, well i won’t Mind him if he will be picked, though as said i have no idea about his current situation, but i agree on every word u wrote about him as now i’m wondering is he been selected to the so called pre-eliminary list or can he maybe be added, if not been selected before as also i can’t remember when was he called last time from Scaloni ?

          Enzo i think will be on abroad asi will be surprised if not even GLC will make it etc..,

          As for Mc Allister, sorry, but i’m not his biggest fan, though i have nothing against him, but just others as Palacios(but u are also right about what u wrote about him too as expectations were kind sky high, but the reality being quite different to that, though i Still prefer him ahead of Mc Allister) and also Dominquez and Almada too at least for me seems more intresting and also fit more for the Arg Nt at least in my eyeslike i also said that i would be really surprise if Enzo won’t be there.

          There for i’m thinking now of Almada as i have not seen him other than in last friendly or friendly’s against Honduras and Jamaica, though after the Honduras game i did not really looked at the Jamaica game, but i saw so ekind of connection with him Messi at least for short period of time and also i don’t know if this is just my feeling, but it felt liked Leo kind of liked playing with him and from that small minutes of conclusion as GLC been allways important in my eyes for LEO’s performance’s and obviously Leo likes tonplay with him i’m kind of wishing fir Almada’s inclusion and if Dominquez is fit i would also maybe pick him too, but as i said i don’t know about his current situation as Palacios situation also fairly not been that great at all with due all the respect etc…

          As u also mentioned those 3 name’s, maybe as the future middfield trio for Arg Nt it also make’s Sense that at least 2 out of 3 should at least be picked if GLC can’t make it, but as u said it is most unlikely that all 3 will be, but if Mc Allister get’s ahead of any of theese 3 it sounds, sorry to say, but not goid to my ears as i understand that Scaloni might want to play it safe as possible, but honestly there are allraedy other’s who can play where in my eyes Mc Allister should play if he is selected as being a 4th or more correctly a 5th sub for Paredes, Guido, Enzo etc…there for i really hope Scaloni will and offcourse he will, but i’m not really sure if he see Mc Allister position as i see with my eyes for example, as in my humble oppinion he don’t have that much to offer to the attack and as i allraedy mentioned how many players i see in front of him in the position i see suite him the best, well it will suck big time at least for me if he get’s now selected only, because of GLC’s possible,but hopefully not replacement

          As it make’s no Sense to me at all as i’m thinking straight as one wasted spot, sorry for all those who want Mc Allister to be abroad amongst the 26 as this is just my humble oppinion and nothing more and everyone who want’s him abroad are allowed to have their oppinion with it as i do have my own, so no need or no time to talk about it as Scaloni and Co will be the one’s making the that choice and everyone including me will have live with it and keep on supporting Arg as they have allways done as in every WC there been injuries so far as i remember, maybe not at 78 though, lol as i can’t honestly remember that, though i was lucky to see it via TV !

          Also everytime i do recall some players not making the squad as 78 and 86 obviously did not matter that much, though i Still wish that young Diego would have been picked with Menotti so that at least he would have won twice instead of one and one that Still give’s me pian as 1990 as also 2014 is hard to forget, obviously, but life is life and us as fan’s for life can basicly only pray and wish for Arg to win as i allways belive with Arg even Sampa went a bit of nut’s, but also he did not have so much time, but Still in the tournament he was way more than unstable etc…no need to talk about it any more as it is in the past as everything else too, rather gonna just focus for future and the present etc…

          Anyhow in the end i would like to see all those 3 names u mentioned @mamoun elpipita, even as u said it will be most unlikely…

          Thanx for your reply and also for your kindness too as do preciate both, though maybe the latter even more…

    • Nice analysis, I agree that it would be a blow but hopefully if he doesn’t make it let’s cross our fingers that all of the possible options are fit and in form. Especially hoping that Palacios gets into form

  9. scaloni choose 10 player in midfield bcs he seen the better player or better replacement player in the name of Enzo , palacios , maccallister, if loceslo is injured then either enzo or palacios going to replace them, i don’t think he think maccalister going to replace locelso, bcs he has zero creativity unlike the other two

  10. I saw Scaloni official 44 players list. It is insane that he has only 10 midfielders there: Paredes, De Paul, Lo Celso, Guido, Papu, Palacios, Enzo, MacAllister, Thiago, Dominguez.

    It is too thin especially Lo Celso, Paredes, Guido, and Palacios are not 100% fit at the moment. He should have included more.

    He even has 6 goalies listed.

    • Well it does sounds a bit weird that 6 goalies and only 10 middfielders in 44 list ?
      Asi can think of what your future thoughts of this subject might be, though i will only comment on Mc Allister, that sorry for all those who wish him to be selected, but if he is now selected as and hopefully not, (as i Still pray for miracle with GLC) a kind of Direct replacement of GLC, if he can’t make it, then i do not see any Sense in that as Mc Allister should be selected for position that he is most suited as i see him as DM or at least a defence minded middfielder, and as there are Paredes, Guido and many other names as even once like Enzo can cover there, though i not see Enzo’s real position there also as i see him more attacking minded middfielder or should i say more creative middfielder and therefore i also think that he will bring something to Arg Nt as MC Allister, sorry for those who like him as i do not hate or anything like that, i just see others as Enzo, Dominquez and Palacios+ Almada more proper replacements for GLC if this is the case, and the one i see maybe the most after Papu is obviously the first one, but maybe one to cover Pau if GLC can’t make it then, maybe i would go for Almada even i seen him play only once in my hole life as it sound, i know, quite weird and there for not really neither can i have some point behind this other than those minutes i saw him play he kind of at least tried and also did linked with Messi as my personal feeling looking at LEO’s face was that he enjoyed playing with Almada as we all know that it is not any secret for LEO liking to play with GLC and also at least for me GLC does help LEO’s life in the Office and also GLC does other things too, though it is a while since he has scored, but he is very important for me at least, though luckily there is Papu too, but Still in the end 6 goalies and only 10 middfielders sounds a bit strange, but as i said many times before i trust in Scaloni as i’m not qualified coach or anything lime that as just an observer there for i will say Scaloni know’s the best until MC Allister will be with 26 men list with, because of GLC can’t make it, well then i will think differently about my words about Scaloni until he might proove me hopefully wrong, so offcourse i will support Arg no matter what, but with certain things if it comes down tonthat i will not agree with, sorry as in advance for Scaloni, though i truly think that he can’t think of Mc Allister as GLC’s replacement or as Papu’s back up as Almada would be more ideal for sure even i do not even hardly seen him play, sorry once more for those supporting Mc Allister as i do understand that everyone has their own favourite’s and their own idea’s as i do also, simple as that and no hard feelings towards anyone etc…only the best for La Seleccion our beloved Albiceleste !

  11. My squad for wc
    Goalkeepers:
    1.emi Martinez
    2.rulli
    3.armani(due to his experience and he is a decent shot stopper)
    Defenders:
    1.lisandro
    2.romero
    3.otamendi
    4.nehuen perez(i know scaloni will select pezella but pezella is slow that can cost us)
    5.tagliafico
    6.acuna
    7.molina
    8.foyth(if foyth is unfit thn montiel)
    9.medina( because he can play both as rb and cb)
    Midfielders:
    1.enzo
    2.depaul
    3.paredes
    4.guido
    5.papu
    6.mcallister( im picking him because he is good in penalties and has decent defensive output)
    7.buendia or almada
    Forwards:
    1.messi
    2.lautaro
    3.dimaria
    4.alvarez
    5.angel Correa
    6.nico Gonzalez
    7.j.correa/simeone/alario(if dybala is fit he will take this spot)

  12. Erik Lamela playing completely out of position under Sampoli. Sampoli using him.in Central striker role. Actually his best position is attacking midfld. All coaches playing him in out of his natural position. If he is playing in his natural position he could be a perfect replacement for Locelso. Lamela is technically good good passer and his goalscoring is not bad and he is verygud player in centre of the pitch. And his distribution of the ball is not bad..

  13. those who is asking for @anuparno ban i think they are asking for some type of favoritism here, anu did nothing wrong, he tried to just come up with his idea what he likes, and he gives a lot of space talk about the fact

  14. It’s so fuming to read some trash talking about lo celso here….. Do these fools really support Argentina NT?
    Now I know why gonzalo doesn’t come here anymore.

  15. Tim Vickery :

    “One of the real strong points of the [Argentina] team is the midfield,” he said.

    “[Leandro] Paredes anchors, [Rodrigo] De Paul adds such dynamism, Lo Celso just threads his little passes through – he has a sweet thing going with Messi.

    “And what it means is they’re getting the ball to Messi, much closer to the opposing goal than has been the case.

    “When they’ve been poor – and there were times in the last World Cup where they were an absolute shambles – they just give the ball to Messi and pray.

    “He was having to drop so deep to start the moves. Not anymore.”

    Whoever replaces Lo Celso has to ensure he links up with Messi well enough in the advanced positions on the field because if Messi has to drop deep again, we will lose 30% of our attacking effectiveness.

  16. It is sad that LoCelso may miss the World Cup. He has been important to this NT. However, in my humble opinion, if he is replaced with Enzo Fernandez, he will not be missed. Mark my words! LoCelso is highly rated here only because he has been the best in his position and there was nobody else in the last 5 years. That is all. Now we have a World-Class midfielder in Enzo, who I believe is the best midfielder we have as of today. If he starts, and if no one else is injured, especially DePaul (the most important midfielder), then we will play the best football in years. To me, LoCelso is like Biglia (I’ve said this before) with more freedom to roam and create. Biglia (Lazio) was a better player than any renditions of LoCelso (except Real Betis). Biglia can shoot from a distance and score free kicks – similar to the DM nobody likes here lol. LoCelso in reality should have always been a good back up if we kept the standards of past midfielders. Just my opinion. I know he’s had games where people say, “this is why he is important.” But to me Nico Dominguez never got 90 minutes to show talent like him. Erik Lamela never tried for 90 minutes in his position. Papu is clearly better offensively (not defensively).

  17. hard time for Lo celso that will be a huge challenge for Scaloni without him and with key players out of form. in my opinion it’s too late to change the formation and playing style, argentina need to play the same football no matter what with the minimum of changes.

  18. I think .mac allister surely going to get a chance in place of Gio. He is not a bad player.vHe is surely Args future captain.There is no better player than Locelso available in Arg.in tht positioni right now tht is the truth.I think Scaloni looks Palacios Macallister or Lamela in place of Gio.i wrote he scaloni never find a backup for gio yet

  19. I am happy that with injury of lo celso some haters supporting him atleast for now. Some of you always posted your starting 11 without lo celso and atlast it is coming into reality. Yeah I can remember it. Glad that they wished him a speedy recovery.

  20. Thanks Roy, funny how removing one guy and this article has like 40 less comments lol. Now it’s not my choice who gets banned or not but I don’t think people like your Anuparnos or Kevins should be banned, they bring different opinions and many people might not agree with them (I usually don’t as most of you have probably noticed), but that’s entirely different than the garbage trolling people like yahoo and RK bring. Opinions and disagreement is fine but pure junk and spam trolling is not.

    • I respectfully disagree about Kevin. He was a racist, spilling anti-Muslim bigotry and hatred. If Roy decided to ban him, it was rightly done.

      @Olive, I don’t know if you missed some of his most prejudiced comments, otherwise you could have had a very different opinion about him.

      • Now that you mention it I do remember some huge disagreement a year ago maybe, but its hard to me to comment because I don’t know much about the topic and it was sort of a “two sides” thing with many people arguing. But it is possible that you’re right

        • Yes, people commenting from both sides were making mistakes but Kevin took it to another level. He even called someone a ter…rist just because the name resembled a Muslim name. Other than that, he maybe was a bit repetitive but not toxic.

          • Nothing wrong with racism if it is accurate. For example, Jews have way too much influence in the world and are beyond a lot of the terrible wars. They are currently in the process of dispossessing the Palestinians.

          • ElCholo, this is classic antisemitism.

            No forms of racism or prejudice are acceptable. Period.

            I forgot about Kevin’s antimuslim rhetoric, and now that I think of it, much of it was anti Bangladeshi too if I am not mistaken.

          • *face palm*
            El Cholo, I’m not even gonna put effort into responding to what you just said but you really are missing the point. This is a football site about the Argentina NT and related topics. Just like nobody comes here to read trolls and spam, also nobody comes here to read antisemitism or argue about geopolitics. Not only that but earlier today I read in a now deleted thread with Yahoo some argument you were having about homosexuality or something. You also said “never trust a Jew” a few articles ago. Talk about making yourself a candidate to be banned.

    • Yes, those kinds of comments and trolling will not be tolerated on the site. But the comments and account have been deleted. Nothing like that on the Mundo Albiceleste!

        • Be happy that you didn’t get the ban as ur calling me psycho psychoalbiceleste.com etc. I never attack personally but you attack personally if someone’s opinion doesn’t match with you. There is many instances that members got ip ban because of abusing or doing personal attacks

          • Don’t dare to teach me..you frist Accused me yaho i’m not..
            as a engineer i know what…… And
            When a Argentine fan express happy after the injury news of player like lo celso , obviously he is mentally unstable, sick,phycho..

          • @jewel why would i be happy with locelso getting out?? But im not pessimistic he is an important player but he is not messi. Behaving like locelso out means we are getting knocked out is ridiculous thinking. If we are worthy of becoming world champions we will device a plan to counter this injury

    • Looks like Yahoo is out of sight sounds hilarious somehow…

      Every now and then we have a troll that has to be dealt with. Good on jefe to be on top of it.

  21. now i remember you. you are the troll that support Brasil and coming before tournaments in mundo to make the forum mess with insults and bad speaking before you banned every time.
    how are you Brasileno ? before you banned again please tell me how you feel after last Copa final? you disappear after that tournament. now you are here again and before you banned again i want to tell me about the team you support. what you think for Brasil? you will win this time?

  22. I still don’t believe Lo Celso will require surgery. I really hope he will be fit just in time. We can’t afford losing him. Papu when given chance is not worse than Lo Celso but we need both Lo Celso and Papu.

    • I have same feeling. Our medical stuff actually monitoring him closely and tomorrow we can see what is outcome. Gio actually decided he doesn’t want to get surgery and he wants to try otherwise

    • I also don’t really feel like he’s out, but I’m not sure if it’s that I’m very hopeful and optimistic or if it’s just the denial stage of grief.

  23. you have school tomorrow so do your homework and after go to play playstation and go to sleep after. no reason to waste your time in mundo.

  24. Don’t say something ridiculous to make people ridicule you. Enzo might turn himself to be a better player than Roman one day, but we haven’t seen him enough to make this claim as of yet.

    Just hold your horse and preserve some judgements for the future

    • roman vilareal player same as celso
      he a loser never win miss in europe jaja very slow no way he survives now

      Enzo will be best midfielder in history of your team. Don’t compare machine with slow overrated loser please

      • your brain is too slow to watch games el cholo you old PTSD victim with trash opinions

        Enzo is a machine unstoppable work everywhere only fools like you dont understand game. I read your opinions all trash please delete yourself

  25. Instead of lo celso we can try….

    ——— (Emi, Martinez — – – –
    Monila..Cuti.Otamendi.L.M
    Depaul—Guido —- j.Corria
    Messi——-N, Gonzalez
    ——-lautaro.M – – – – – –

    • In support of the homosexuality at the WC we should play the most handsome midfield.

      DePaul – hair
      Paredes – light blue eyes
      Enzo – best teeth

  26. Even Anuparno’s biggest lows are incomparable to this, honestly I respect Anuparno much more now. He actually gives ideas, unlike the dumpster fire we see today.

  27. Wondering why nobody talking about buendia in midfield. He is attacking, creative, good in defensive works, can maintain high pressing. He can be another option for us in the midfield

  28. Stop criticizing anu or anyone……anu is a bit childish but he has not done anything too bad……IDK if it is coming from you bcz you want to look good by belittling other people……the YAHOO dude might be a real jerk

    • Nobody can belittle a person unless he/she belittle thyself. Just because someone is telling something belittling to a person doesn’t make him/her little unless his/her actions justify it.

      To you, anu is a bit childish. To me, he is a bit everywhere. I didn’t judge him for his intellect, but you did.

      • I never judged him for his intellect. Simply saying decency and generosity should be given priority. Anu never did anything too bad…..just a bit annoying sometimes….people who deserve severe criticism is kid, romance, etc….I fell victim a very mean motherfucking asshole on this forum called Leandro Arg something……so now I am feeling for anu………fuck that leandro son of a bitch dude to hell……..

  29. Ohhh nooooo.

    we need our midfield… That is very bad. RDP Paredes and GLC were a well oild machinery.. It would be very bad if one of those are missing…
    I understand what you guys are saying about Enzo Palacios or others in case of Talant and form, but believe me we need our stable midfield with those three… That was our strength.

    I don’t like to play Papu as midfielder he is a winger or 10 but can not be played in 3 Man Mid.
    If Lo Celso can’t make it we need to bring Enzo… I really hope and pray that GLC can go to WC we need him

  30. Enzo Fernandez is a versatile midfielder, who is best described as a number eight. He played on the right side of River Plate’s 4-3-3 tactic. River Plate under Marcelo Gallardo are a tactically versatile team, so Fernandez is comfortable being asked to perform different roles and tasks. Fernandez is equally effective in and out of possession. His in-possession contribution is multi-faceted with the ability to get in the box and score goals but also drop deeper and help break down low blocks. Defensively he excels in interceptions and counter-pressing,

    this is quite big article and here what says everything is good about enzo,
    here is the conclution of the article
    Enzo looks to be a great box-to-box and is off to a great start with his new club, hopefully, he keeps up the good form. With the way the recruitment style of teams in the Premier League has gone lately, with regards to raiding the Liga NOS, we could see the young man in England one day.
    Benfica has picked up a great talent for a decent fee and could be again making a profit in years to come on this signing. It will be interesting to follow Enzo’s journey
    but some people thinks enzo is no good with defence …

  31. i am sure that some people here believe that football is like playstation or even worse they learn football from playstation.
    i don t want to mention names because we will fight in end and sure i don t have time or desire for that.
    so. Lo celso is one of the starting 11 and our team was builded 2 years now planed with him inside. his miss is big blow for us anyhow. he is not Messi or Maradona or any kind of superstar but he was important piece of our well oiled machine. now we need to replace that part. is he replaceable? OF COURSE YES but the question is not here if we have player to replace him. OF COURSE we have. BUT the question here that has no answer before world cup starts is THE NEW PART that we will use in our machine CAN WORK SAME? forget about better let say. is it possible same?
    Nobody can know because there is not exist time for testing and better adopt. so whoever love this team and understand from football can not be happy and feel safe with miss of Lo celso. only fans that care for their favorite persons FIRST and not for the team can be happy and feel safe.
    something last about Enzo. some people discover him lately and believe he is one kind of super midfielder that combine Simeone, Ortega and Gago all together. some others i don t know why they believe he is very poor player. well Enzo is not belong in both of them.
    and before someone jump on me or his fan or his hater i should say that i had the priviledge as River fan to see him playing live from years before when the majority didn t know him at all or even if they knew him IF i could dare to say his name beside national team the minimum i supose to receive is mock. so give me a brake.
    Enzo is one very good player that have place in national team sure. just i am very thinkingful if he can give NOW what we miss from our machine. the same is for whoever he will try to fill the gap of Lo celso.
    CHEMISTRY and BALANCE is 2 very important keys in football. whoever understands, understands. nothing more to say.

  32. Yahoo, friendly question, how many games have you watched of Enzo? All of his games in Benfica plus his one game in Argentina? Give me a number

    • Okay, so I am assuming you’ve seen 26 games at most. I’ve seen around 76. I’ve seen him play “higher up the field”, and I’ve been able to notice that his position on the field does not change the characteristics he provides. I’ve also seen that he is more of a retention dribbler, slower, not a clean tackler, not someone that runs the whole pitch, etc. That’s fine, everyone has their style. Lo Celso also has weaknesses where Enzo has strengths. But it just so happens that Lo Celso’s strengths align with what is needed in the LCM role for Argentina. Enzo’s main strengths are not what is entirely needed in that role. It doesn’t matter if he is better than Lo Celso, Lo Celso would have to be a very poor player to unbalance the talent/role scale. And he’s not.

  33. Dibu

    Montiel
    Cuti
    Lisandro
    Tagliafico

    Guido
    Mac
    Enzo

    Messi
    Nico
    Lautaro

    ultra-tight defensively.
    Messi to play through balls to Lautaro and Nico
    Remember: anti-futbol = winning futbol

    • Sorry but this is a super bad tactic. Maybe if we start with this against Saudi. I am sure it is 0-0 in the first half with almost no chance to score. We don’t need to be too defensive minded. What we displayed in the Copa America and finallissima is perfect. It is a perfect balance between attacking and defending.

  34. DePaul -Guido-Paredes
    No one discussed, this possibility.
    Reports were telling, Scaloni was thinking Enzo vs Palacios for final spot. Now both will be selected if LoCelso not making to the WC team.
    Not thinking Almada has a chance. He is a replacement for Papu in case of emergency.

        • Enzo is similar to Biglia. Does everything pretty well but nothing outstanding and quite slow. More of a holding mid but can play a little bit more advanced.
          Enzo more physical but Biglia smarter.
          Also Enzo has nicer teeth.

    • > DePaul -Guido-Paredes. No one discussed.

      We have seen this nightmare combo before. Guido + Paredes (or Mac Allister) kills the midfield progression. I don’t care to see those paired up again unless its dying minutes. One of Guido or Paredes on the pitch with 2 dynamic players are a must.

      • The problem Enzo is not a dynamic player. With Florentino its work who is a dynamic midfielder but not with Guido or Paredes or with Macallister. I see Enzo place in the team in the future only as a lone DM the heir of Paredes and Guido, nowhere else. But he has to be much better defensively for this.

        • In Enzo’s debut game, Allister was continuously passing to Enzo. It has given him an opportunity to show his skills. He got more opportunities to go forward.

        • Our dynamic midfielders: Papu, GLC, De Paul and Thiago Almada
          Average: Palacios, Nico Dominguez, Macallister and Enzo between awerage dynamism and slow, but Alexis has the edge over Enzo from what ive seen from them. And slow midfielders Paredes and Guido. Two slow guys in the middle is too much. Maybe even Enzo/Macallister with Paredes/Guido is too much. Their midfield partners are good athletes Caicedo and Florentino. Good luck with a Paredes/Guido type DM.

      • Even though we like Enzo, I don’t believe Scaloni will all of sudden start him in a tournament like WC. Papu will start the first match. But later, we will surely see the above lineup if LoCelso doesn’t make it. Palacios has better chance than Enzo as he is values highly by Scaloni.

  35. Last year I made a case for Almada to be part of the National team but someone here shot me down. Imagine my surprise then when he was called up by Scaloni. I hope he’ll make the cut.
    NB Messi made complimentary remarks about him.

  36. We need El Mongol back, someone with legitimate tactical ideas. The reason why is I want to ask, I am open, how can our midfield be functional with Enzo, Paredes, and De Paul as starters? What would be every player’s individual role? And no, saying Enzo is better than so and so is not an answer. Go play FIFA.

    • palacios enzo depaul definitely going to be functional but i’m not clear about the idea enzo paredes depaul, paredes in the middle, yes i like to enjoy el mongol post back then but it seems to be very long time he is no longer available in this side.
      enzo is hybrid but not fine-grained player, he is only 21 he has plenty of room to go up, but telling him at this moment he is finest player, this is foolishness, he is a alrounder yet to be flourish

      • yes enzo is good and i will say very good but not the hype you are telling, he has process in that hype which he will go with time, at this moment enzo is definitely a key player , but not the hype he is the best player in the squad even above then messi dimaria deapaul, obviously he can play anywhere in midfield even he can play in place of depaul but yet for the top best midfielder he had to go with experience

    • @olive_majestic

      > We need El Mongol back

      Lol in total agreement. He’s a god amongst men when it comes to tactical breakdown. Always used to learn something new from his posts. I mention this before but i think he avoids all the “toilette water” discussions ie players selections, favorite formations, this post is an example, etc and chimes in for real analysis after the squad is selected and the teams plays an actual game. I hope he’ll be back for the WC!

      For what it’s worth, we have other great contributors and you are among them. you do a fantastic job as well.

      • Thank you, and the compliment goes to you as well. About El Mongol it makes sense if tactical analysis is his thing that he’d only show up during games. I couldn’t see him participating in today’s discussions for sure. I remember him reappearing during the Copa America and some other game, so hopefully he resurfaces this month as he blows it out of the water with his breakdowns

  37. Sometimes Anuparno you talk as if our players are video game characters in your Fifa game that you can just replace at any time. What other replacements? is it the ones that are unproven yet – Mac Allister totatlly horrible, Palacious Never lived up to expectation, Dominguez average and inconsistent, Papu too old to last grueling WC matches at best you can get 60 minutes out of him for each, Enzo not his natural role or Almalda that is in MLS. For our sakes’ let hope Gio injuiry is not serious!

  38. If anyone here believes Lo Celso is irreplacable, you are just a delusional Arg fan. This argentina team is not as talanted as Brazil/France, but we play as a TEAM. We don’t rely on any star player, not to mention that Lo Celso was dumped by Hotspurs and didn’t draw any interests with a pathetic 18M euro price tag.

    I am happy that Enzo will have a chance in our starting 11. Vamos!!

    • I don’t know what to say to you. It ain’t like that I TOLD YOU SO! I believe you will call Scaloni, Aimar,Samuel and Ayala delusional too just because you believe Enzo is better then Lo Celso even they are two different type of players. But I can guarantee you that even there is 40% chance then still Scaloni will wait for him. Because unfortunately his football brain is delusional like some of us here you tend to think. It ain’t about his our favourite player or something it’s all football. I don’t believe in I TOLD YOU SO!!

  39. Agreed with Mafiaso. I think Scaloni intercepted this situation and I can see Almada going to Qatar now. Won’t be bad at all. Before Enzo fans jumping on me YES Enzo going too. How do I know! I have crystal ball

  40. Diego’s World Cup career:

    • Champion
    • 2nd place
    • Quarterfinal
    • Round of 16

    🏆 Messi’s World Cup career:

    • 2nd place
    • Quarterfinal
    • Round of 16

    I CHOOSE TO BELIEVE.

  41. youtube.com/watch?v=fCt1pNn8IMs

    can’t believe this was his first game with nt, and he played only 20 to 30 minute,
    i have no doubt about this two player enzo and palacious

  42. Guys after some analysis, we should not panic after Lo Celso loss. He is not top player who will take all the way to the top of football either in UCL or WC. He is almost won the trophy type player and we already had enough of those. I think we should be fine with Papu and other substitute. There is a reason he was out of contract and bottler team Spurs didnt even want him. WE SHOULD BE FINE AND IF WE ARE MEANT TO WIN, NO BODY CAN STOP US.

    • 1. He was vital in Villarreal making it to the semi finals and had Bayern on a rope, so we actually do have an example that he is capable of making a difference at the top level.
      2. Papu is like 34 years old, he can not replace a young player like Lo Celso during a tournament as grueling as this that might have 120 minute games. A really good sub, yes, an occasional starter, yes, the best replacement for Lo Celso, yes, but we have serious problems having to rely on him at this age. Imagine if something happens to him.
      3. Who gives a flying f*ck about what happened at “spurs”? He’s our third highest rated player in the qualifiers, our top assistor in the qualifiers, our second in big chances created, AND IS OUR STARTING MIDFIELDER. That spurs dumpsterfire experience where he was played out of position and had several injuries in a dysfunctional team that would lose games in the ECL happened over a year ago. What about the fact that he did well in the CL, Betis, Villarreal, and FOR US? Premier league bias it seems.

        • And what other Argentinian won the UCL last season? If we base ourselves on that, we would have to reincarnate Maradona to get a player that can singlehandedly take a team to a final. We have to conform ourselves with 10 players + Messi who alone won’t drag a team to the WC final but who work well in our system and do it collectively, and Lo Celso is very important to our system and of the best we have for our standards.

  43. Need foyth. Palacious looks like same profile as Mac allister. Better they go for almada a more attcking option… Coach knows better… Just wait and see.

  44. Lo Celso’s backup is Papu. More attacking threat, width and close control but less defensive work.

    Coaching staff won’t just put Enzo in Lo Celso’s place.

    This is not ideal but not the end of the world.

    Gago was soul of Sabella’s team. He provided defensive balance as well as endless vertical passes to Messi. He did not miss the wc but was not the same player after 6 months of serious injury. We reached final with Biglia.

    What if Lo Celso got injured in the middle of wc?
    It is what is and happens in football.

    It is big problem but something the coaching staffs have to solve. There are options.

    Let be calm and enjoy football. Some unknown players grow to the team as tournament progresses. De Paul was result of 2019 Copa.

    We have talent and depth. A champion team must have depth.

    • If papu plays in place of locelso our average age will increase that may lead to 4 30+ players in the starting 11 thats bad to maintain high intense pressing. Scaloni needs to find another solution.

  45. i believe this two are the player who can fill up the gap of locelso palacios and enzo , only the weak side is enzo didn’t played in right midfield after moving to benefica

  46. Gio would be missed terribly but remember, Things happen for a reason. This could be a coming out party for Enzo Fernandez who has been in sparkling form. Cuti got his spot right before the copa campaign. Goycochea came from a Pumpido injury even in 2014 Enzo Perez became a monster from being a fringe bench player.

    • ??? Neither goal was Molina’s foul, Savic is totally exposed. Molina has to attack in Atletico, this is not park the bus Villarreal, where you play a RCB with zero attacking task. But with these type of side backs you will always stay a park the bus, mid table small team, who never win anything. Argentina want to win trophies, not only defend, rather create width and space for the attackers.

      • But Molina was way too out of position. And the marking was awful. Yes whole backline of atletico was crap and if not oblak they could have conceded 4 goals easily. But i was closely watching Molina. How he is defending how he is passing how he is marking but yes he did provide some good runs bt his final pass was dissapointing and his defending i already told before

  47. lpqtp….

    Lo Celso is a player that allowed Messi to stay closer to goal and they had a nice connection.

    What a loss that would be. Yes, others can play in his position but none with the same impact…

      • yes all above and more
        he much more rated and all big club want to buy from us
        ball recovery he much superior to lo celso not close my friend. Dribble yes absolute yes.

        you have not watched him you dont kno why we put price at 60m minimum. crazy fans here think lo celso better jajaa

        • You might want to read again. I said LO CELSO is a better runner, dribbler, tackler, and ball recoverer than Enzo. So if you agree with the above statement thinking it was the other way around, then clearly your opinion can not be trusted whatsoever. His transfermarkt value is 35 M, not sure where this 60 M value is coming from

        • olivia read what i write
          Enzo is better no compareson
          benfica sell for no less than 60m
          lo celso worth zero dollares his carreer over
          enzo if you watch games does everything nd more

  48. Man i forget the name Matias Zaracho who can well replaced lo celso bcs zaracho is one box to box midfielder and he can contribute in defence as well as in attack, his defensive contribution tackling best matches with locelso profile and his finishing is not bad, scaloni in the beginning of his progress once praised zaracho

    • Zaracho is not creative, neither a good ball progressor from passing. Much more Enzo, Papu or even Thiago Almada. Zaracho is similar to 2014 version of Enzo Perez wo european experience.

      • zaracho is not creative i agree some part of it some part of not, from the side of defence he has similarity with locelso, i mentioned about him bcs i remembered scaloni praise about him

        • Lo Celso was the perfect balanced option for LCM, every other option has some weaknesses. Yes they have stronger attributes than Lo Celso too, but neither of them are balanced for that role.
          Enzo, Macallister, Papu, Palacios, Almada. Neither. Lo Celso could run, defend, dribble, attack, progressing, make the final pass, had good speed, intelligent off the ball, gave width. Only scoring was his weak part. (Only Papu and maybe Almada is better goalscorer than him). He was at least OK in all of these.

          See Enzo: slower speed, even slower dribbler, cant give you width, only can play in double six, defending weaknesses, all around creativity even under GLC in that position.

          Better ball progressor and better passer and ofc shooter. But that not what we need there in LCM

          • i agree with you in here about locelso, locelso loss is really immense for us, i don’t agree with you enzo is weak in defence, and i saw some match where he plays as attacking player and he did it very well, after moving to benefica he is continously playing defensive midfield but in river he play as right sided midfielder most of the time, his slowness just reason of his adaptation what the coach wants from him in new league and first season, he doing it well

          • First of all, good posts by all 3 of you. I hope Roy Nemer considers giving you a raise.

            No doubt we will play more defensively with Lo Celso out but it could benefit us as we play more difficult opponents. Might be blessing in disguise.

          • I saw some analysis about Scaloneta and very important in Scaloni system from the LCM to give width for the team. We overload the right side with Di Maria, Messi and overlapping Molina so in this quasi 4-4-2 the left side would be quasi empty wo a midfielder who can give this width. Only GLC and Papu can give this width for us. Wo them ARG have to switch to double 6, but that is not Scaloni play, and has to play DiMa on the left side again what we dont like or RDP on the left side with Di Maria stayin on the right? Who will play there? The balance is not there anymore.

    • RDP, Molina, Correa too. Fingers crossed. Messi should survive only two matches. I hope he wont run only playmakin, vs Juventus Messi has to fight without Neymar, but against Lorient just stay super relaxed. Neymar and Mbappe will do the job.

  49. Scaloni has made this team not to depend on anyone. Yes, Messi, DePaul, Emi, Cuti etc are very very important but this team can win even without them. This team has a plan, a clear ideas, hard work, They are ready to sacrifice, ready to fight till end.

    Lo Celso is very important player but is replaceable. We dont have exact same replacement but the close call is Enzo. I am not glorifying Enzo here. He has his weakness, Lo Celso too. In some areas Enzo is better.
    May be again, we have a devine intervnetion, to include Enzo in starting x1..just like Emi,Cuti etc.!
    Still think, Lo Celso is not OUT. May be Grade 1 only as reported before. Then he can be ready just before the WC.

  50. Heart breaking news. Its 2 wc where he could have featured bt didn’t. Imagine the mental condition of locelso seeing us on the tv lifting the world Cup and rueing the fact that he could have been among the world Cup winners. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Hope he is okay and go to qatar

  51. Even he decides not to take surgery, he still would be a liability for us and can be out anytime during the tournmanet. We better start Enzo from now on.

    Hotspurs was right about him. He was just stubborn and refused to build his body in EPL.

  52. Damn!! This is why you shouldn’t rush back to impress your new coach!! He was on route to recovery and also getting adequate time to rest but now he is out of the world cup!! We have Papu to replace him but again Papu won’t be able to put in the defensive work. The one player we didn’t have a proper backup is out of the world cup. Right now the only player who has the right blend of creativity and defensive strength is only Enzo but his footballing IQ is nothing compared to Lo-ceslo, who arguably was our third best creative player with high futballing IT after Dimaira. This is a huge blow!!!

    • Papu is great at holding the ball, controlling the play, and his passing is worldly but as you say, he doesn’t put in the same defensive work as GLC and due to age, might not be able to hang for 90.

      For Enzo, i don’t agree with some that he’s only a Paredes sub. I think Enzo can certainly fill in the gap but he’s not as creative and dynamic. This is a huge loss.

      The other obvious replacement and might be the closest replacement is COCO LAMELA but he’s not in Scalonis plan. FACK FACK FACK..im so pissed!!!

      • There is 4 players who can play in locelso position
        1.almada
        2.enzo
        3.papu
        4.palacios
        Now scaloni have to change the formation we may now have to play either 3-4-3 or 3-5-2 or 4-4-2 to counter this

        • Dont expect Scaloni will change everything all of sudden. Hes not Sampaoli. He has clear ideas. He will continous to use the same formation. As always, he may do minor adjustment according to the opponenet.

          • But scaloni said in an interview recently that he is considering to play 3-5-2 formation in wc in some games and according to him he is practicing with this formation in trainings for long time now

  53. I blame this to Antonio conte and tottenham bcs they didn’t allow him to do proper per season as they stopped him to train with the first team therefor gio lo celso came to villareal in bad shape fitness wise which leads to this sad injury, you got to feel gio in human leve I’m really so sorry that he got this injury and probably bit sad about it

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