Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni speaks on team, Lionel Messi, loss, Mexico game

By
Roy Nemer
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70

Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni spoke about the team, the loss vs. Saudi Arabia and the game vs. Mexico.

Lionel Scaloni spoke at a press conference after Lautaro spoke to the media. Scaloni spoke about the team’s kiss vs. Saudi Arabia. Here is what he had to say:

“The first day is shocking but the next day you get up and think about the next game. I have always said that we must be prepared for when we get the first blow, because it was all joy and in difficult moments is when we need everyone’s support.

“I am the first one who was prepared for this, it can happen, it’s football. What I am calm about is that every game we are going to play, we are going to give our lives and play our football.

“There are games that can be won and lost, unfortunately, it happened in a World Cup. But we are lucky it happened in the first game. You can lose a game, the issue is how you get up.

“Maybe we didn’t move the ball with enough speed to find the places quickly. After one, two, three touches and maybe that is why we had mistakes in our last passes.

“The players have their last training today which is where we will be defining the starting eleven.”

Scaloni also spoke about the nerves:

“It’s normal to be nervous in your first game at a World Cup. Argentina is different to other national teams. You know how Argentina is, we are different and it’s different to have your debut at a World Cup with the Argentina shirt.”

On Lionel Messi:

“Leo is doing well. We know that tomorrow we will have a different match. And we will give everything on the pitch.

“I don’t know who said he is not fit. I think there were pictures of him training and he trained well. He is feeling well. More than ever, we need everyone. His team mates. We have no questions at all about his physical level and emotionally he is feeling well too. No questions there.”

Regarding the game vs. Mexico:

“Yes, we have watched the game and we are already thinking about Mexico which will be entirely different in the way that we will play with a similar… We won’t change our style due to what happened on Tuesday.

“Mexico is an excellent team, we already said before hand when we found out about the group stage. They are an offensive team with a great coach and we have our style that is not negotiable. We might have gotten a blow in the opening match but we know we need to stick to our guns, to approach the game as we had prepared beforehand.”

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70 Comments

  1. Changing the team means he is admitting that he was wrong with his choice for the first match. Wow! Keeping out a tall Cuti is reactive. He is generally not slow. It was just one bad day at office. Enzo is a good choice. But Paredes is a bounce-back guy. Why not Alvarez to start against a young and breezy Mexican defence? Does Scaloni really have a game plan in mind or he is just reacting to what so called pundits have been commenting on different websites?

  2. Kidulthood and WC2022 are some of the toxic fans in this group and trying to create a very hostile environment…I am not really sure if these guys are Argentina fans or a wolf in a sheep’s clothing acting like one but admin please ensure some of the comments in this group are kept in tab 🙏

  5. What Scaloni said shows that he is a coach who knows what to do.The team is very strong and confident but it is somewhat subjective to think that they can walk ahead of Saudi Arabia. It was clear that his team were not passing the ball fast enough. We will definitely see another Argentina in the next game.

  6. Also Argentina SNUB Garnacho because he was Spaniard, nativism is destroying Argentina football. Nothing wrong with opening up your football to other cultures and styles..

    The beauty of the modern game is like for example the Athletic Bilbao brothers choosing to play for different nations; Iñaki Williams choosing Ghana and his younger brother Nicholas “Nico” Williams choosing to represent Spain.

    I’m not here to hate but it’s also not good to live in a bubble. You see I’m alright, not invested in any teams at the World Cup. Watching every game with comfort and ease.

    • Right, not calling Fernando Tissone was a mistake too like you suggested years ago?

      Kid coming back to PMS once in a blue moon is his signature move. He can’t help it even if Argentina is not diverse enough.

    • Then why would Scaloni have called him up at all ever when he didn’t even have a single senior minute? Did he realize after he was Spanish? Iñaki Williams only chose to play for Ghana because he knew he wasn’t going to ever play another minute for Spain, otherwise he wouldn’t have waited until he was 28 to choose to play for them

  7. It’s like the same time at every world cup. Dillusional people come on here think with Messi we are champions already neglecting the role of coaching staff. Without having a great tactician by the sideline, it won’t be different than 2018, 2010 or 2002. The coach is the maestro of the game from A to Z. Failing to win the first game against KSA was a major failure and a big problem written I’m the history books. Group C is the easiest group of all other groups this WC and we are still at the bottom of the list although we played our supposedly easiest game first. Scaloni, how about you call another player from MLS?

    • What were you saying months prior to this? Some of you pathetic clowns only show up when things go sour. You do not say a peep when we are dominating. You seem to forget all the hard work that was put into this project when a single thing goes haywire.

      • What project are you talking about? Relying heavily on 35 years old front line with no alternatives? Placing Di Maria, Messi, and Papu all at 35 years of age and all injured at the front line, is that a project? You lose Lo Celso, God help us, we don’t have a replacement for him….oh wait, let’s send for Almada. I admire this project…..it’s called lazy coaching.

    • What an idiotic take…Nothing you say here will bring any value. Perhaps you should tweet Scaloni and AFA and see if they respond? Dude, you’re not here before and talking Sh1T after a game’s lost. Do better instead of riling people up…

      • That’s selective and cognitive bias of you, you filter the information that is aligned with what you think is true while rescind opinions threaten your own insecurities.

    • That deepshit you talked about will top their group because their last game will be against Qatar. Also those are the teams that will peak at the right time and surprise you….win or draw, don’t lose point, then give it all at the knockout stages. Don’t expect them to play 100% at this stage and lose half of the team for injuries. It’s called strategy.

      • No in this team have zero creativity. Dont you see their matches?
        “Also those are the teams that will peak at the right time and surprise you….” You are talking about Argentina clearly. France, Spain, England peaked too early, they will be only worse.

  9. just watched Ecuador play Nederlands. How well are they coached. Unlucky not to win this one. Fast, supremely fit, 2 things we clearly lack. They are a rising power in South America. Brazil too looked fit and strong. Uruguay unlucky not to win their match against Korea. Suarez his killing them sadly. Every single team looking good at the world cup is team oriented and all teams depending on traditional looking for ur main man looks out of place, especially if that main man hangs down his head and shoulders well before the war is over. Sad, a great Footballing nation cannot find a proper coach for 24 years.
    The best news is when this nightmare is over for us all the poster boys will disappear in the sunset and we don’t have any new superstar, but have a plenty of talented players in all position. Get a real coach and we will have a team (finally) that will sure challenge for the cup in 2026.

    • My friend, have you ever heard of the fact that Argentina had a 36 game unbeaten run until they lost controversially against a saudi team that caused 5 minutes of mayhem and got lucky ? You are dissing Argentina and comparing to the very teams they beat to reach this stage i.e. Ecuador, Uruguay and Brazil … Ok they started slow of the blocks, so what , you got 2 more games to go and this is the time to support your team, can’t believe the toxicity in this group chat 🤷

  10. The only bright spots on this Argentina team are Licha Marinez, Enzo Fernandez and Alex Mac Allister at this year’s World Cup. And Yes, Mac Allister is a baller, he is a really good player. If Argentina doesn’t recover and do well at this year’s World Cup, it will be really hard to convince anyone that Argentina is a superpower on the national stage. And with the lack of talent in the biggest European clubs, I don’t see where Argentina goes after Messi and Di Maria, the last two of their great generation and the generations before like the 2000-2006 class.

    I was interested in the Argentina games until Scaloni SNUB Garancho, as I said before one of the worst decisions in football history..With Ronaldo now gone from Man United, just watch this guy scoring goals left, right and center.

    If the game against Mexico is tied going into the second half, it will be curtains for Argentina..The second half will likely turn into Croatia vs Argentina 2018, with multiple Argentinian players becoming Willy Cabellero making unnecessary unforced errors. Argentina is going to need a 3 goal cushion against Mexico, score two in the first half and another 2 or 3 in the second half.

    Look how youthful and vibrant this Ecuadorian team is.

    Scaloni is not a good coach, he took the worst tactics of Pekerman and Sampaoli to the current team. The fact there was even a debate to take Enzo Fernandez to the World Cup goes to show you Scaloni is just a reactionary coach. Several of the players on the team were only selected because of events happening outside of Scaloni control. Would Emi Martinez even be the goalkeeper if Armani didn’t caught C***D? Di Maria had to do interviews after interviews in Argentina for him to get back into the team. The fact that the coach took Armani over Musso is another poor decision..Armani got a Copa medal, ok it’s time to move on, it’s that simple, this should have been the call the next day after Copa America. Why were guys like Meza and Pereya even an option for this World Cup but not Lamela?

    • You disappear for many months and then appear out of nowhere and grace us with your doom and gloom predictions…….I could be wrong, but I specifically looked for your comments after ARG won COPA last year and don’t remember if I found any.

      This is the team, these are the players and That’s the Coach and his staff plain and simple, not me you or anybody else can change that and If the AFA doesn’t know what’s good for their team then WHO DOES?

      • You don’t know Kid, he’s the most die for fan since 2010 WC. He also not parochial like you, he watches football from around the world and recognizes what is a good display vs shameful shifty performance. Roster selection is the stepping stone for the WC, you select MLS fraud players over talented players shinning at the Premeir league then you are doomed.

    • Kidulthood I know you are a senior member in this group and are also one of the most toxic fans ever… If you have nothing good to say they say don’t say anything at all 🙏

      • “I was interested in the Argentina games until Scaloni SNUB Garancho, as I said before one of the worst decisions in football history…”

        Put down the crack pipe.

  11. You know when you’re super hungry and you sit down to eat, start eating and then somebody does something at the dinner table and you completely lose your appetite.

    That’s how I felt Before during and after the game……..my appetite is coming back and that person is not invited to come back.

    BTW, we Americans have the most annoying FOOTBALL fans Not candyass “Soccer” on the planet with the stupid flag outfits and dumb chants

  12. Ecuador is better, should have easily won, dominated the match and Netherlands was just lucky another goal was unfairly disallowed. Remember runner of of this group will meet England who will win group B. And if we top group C, we will not meet neither of them. That’s why I want Netherlands to finish second.

    Now hope Qatar would do anything (I don’t care with real effort or with money) to get at least 1 point from Netherlands in their final game just for the pride of the host.

  14. South American is a different animal. The Europeans should know that… Just like Valencia did, take notes. This is a team that could held BOTH Argentina and Brazil to a draw in their WC Qualifier.

  15. Friends all are in the favour of Argentina. Holland looking not threatening. Ecuador may face us in the quarters. It’s only upto argentina. They have to give all.

  17. Everyone on here criticizing the poor showcase of Argentina are pure Argentina fans worry of the national team future, but those who defend the last display and put it on luck, bribes, etc. are Messi’s boy fans. Period. Oh, and more thing, the team doesn’t have a true leader on the pitch, that’s for a fact.

    • You’re not a pure fan you’re a fake fan you come on here talk a bunch of bs anyone follow your comment will see how fake you are you only want to jump on the ship when everything goes well hypocritie

    • Hey man what’s your fucking malfunction bro? If you don’t like the team or don’t think they are up to your standards that’s fine. Everybody here is tired of your shit talk. Yeah, we had a bad game. If we lose it sucks but move on man.

    • That’s true. These players should stop being Messi bootlicker and start playing for the team. Secondly if Messi is not fit, he should stop being selfish and rest for the sake of the team. Otherwise we don’t need this BS from the players saying they will be fighting for Messi, let them fight for the team.

    • Oh really?? I don’t really like attacking people but i can’t handle on this. You and some others like you in here don’t just criticise but show disrespect not only to the team that you are supposed to support but to the fans as well. You are a true “plastic” fan who whenever the team suffers you come and spit your poison and make fun by disrespectful comments. Do you know what a real fan does? Backs up and stands by the team when things go wrong than mocking and making fun instead!
      Hey “pure fan”, how old are you really? Because apart from that you are fake, there are quite many people in here who have been following our team for decades and you are coming and telling them that they are just Messi fans?
      Apart from being disrespectful you make yourself seem like a real fool!

    • Because it is called “close call” which could go either way. Get over it, if a team chances depends on just that disallowed goal against the described weakest team in the tournament, then the team is mediocre and not top class destroyer type of team.

    • You can wait as much as you want lamenting on that close call, but other teams who come here to win will not wait. Every team was given the new rules of the technology before the tournament, no excuse here.

  19. The problem guys is that the team doesn t play for Argentina it plays for messi you have 26 players and coach and staff claiming that they ll die for him instead for Argentina. I ve never seen this before even when Diego was there they were fighting for the country and not for him and he was the first one who did it.
    See when voeller scored the 2 2 look at diego s reaction fuck this was fucking awesome he just refused to lose and he gave everything for that win even if he was the most gifted football player you have to grab the victory not to to be gifted with.
    I m a huge messi fan but he still have this bad habbit to give up during a game and this time it blows me up versus germany 14 we could say it could happen in 2018 it was fucked but now it s over. You have to run you have to try breaking the defense lock even if you are surrended by 3 4 defenders man he s 35 last chance you could not let this team being a shame this is Argentina the country of sivori di stefano diego batistuta kempes come on boy he has to freee himself from his comfort HE HAS TO DIE for the team for all what the country gave him support love teams …..
    It s not the world who owe him a world cup he has to prove that he deserves it

  20. I don’t know about you guys but I’m tired of the wait and tired of the talk. In respect to Messi’s health it’s all lies. We will know by his pace if he is injured or not. Even if he was injured they wouldn’t admit it. Just go out there and play your ass off and win. We are not talking about games with powerhouse teams. Every World Cup we beat ourselves faster than any other team. That’s why we are in this hole.

  21. Though he didn’t mention if he is intended to take coaching workshops on how to take your strikers off the off side trap. Because whatever was written in Sampaoli’s notebook is not accurate.

    • Ah yes WC2022 giving advice and teaching Scaloni, Messi, Toro, and Di María how to beat an offside trap.
      I’ve seen Pep, Klopp, Conte get beat on basics as well. Shit games happen all.the.time. That’s all.

  22. The problem with pundits and fans as a general is that they truly believe the more players you have playing for big teams the stronger your team is! Nope!! Not necessarily and not always. You need supporting cast players to do the dirty job for the stars to execute their game. Haters were already writing off Argentina before the Italy match due to our lack of players playing for big clubs in Europe and with the last humiliating defeat where the whole team looked out of gas and old, we are officially the underdogs!! Pundits are calling Messi for being slow and weak minded Choker and asking him to retire. English media trashing our players saying no-one is good enough to be included in the English team when they have players like Grealish going for 100 million!! One good thing the humiliating defeat did was release the pressure off of our players. Our players play for mid-table teams and with all the media hating we can at least go the match without any pressure from the media and haters!!Having said that our progress in this tournament will 80% depend on our character and mindset and 20% skills. If we go with Higuain mindset then we will crash out. If we believe in all the hard-work our team did in the past 4 years and go out with the Viking mentality Mexico and Poland are no match!!

    Also I would take the news about our starting xi and formation from news channel and journalist with a grain of salt. I don’t think Montiel will start ahead of Molina and Tagliafico will retain his spot!!

    • you know that most of times we don t think similar and we have different ideas but i am obligated after i read that post to express my deep respect to you and be sure that from now on i will be more careful about your posts.
      you don t have to answer me but i am sure that in your life or you have play football in a team minimum in youth levels or even higher or you have people in your family with football backround. you said some things that i will be shocked if i am wrong.
      Anyway. hat s off from me.

  24. I still feel we should field back four with, licha, Ota, romero n molina. licha as left back though he’s not tried but sure he can do a better than the available options

  25. OKAY, that’s what I wanted to hear, “MESSI IS DOING WELL” that’s all you have to say, Let’s GO.

    “We have no questions at all about his physical level and emotionally he is feeling well too. No questions there.”

    Enough said

    • Well if Messi is still injured, he wouldn’t say to the media, oh by the way Messi is still having issues with his ankle. I don’t buy any of the media talk. He shouldn’t even appear until he get his team qualified to the second round. Plus instead of wasting time preparing for this media shit talk, he should have spent more time training the team. Perhaps, watch on YouTube how veteran coaches were able to conquer off side trap.

    • it’s a blessing in disguise. we lost the first match, we can win it with confidence but not with over confidence. been supporting my beloved team since 1986

    • Only amateur or bad coaches or fans whose fantasy is becoming a coach who would make huge changes after just ONE bad game when their team already made 36 games without losing, and 2 major cups. Think about it…

      If you think about world class coaches, they don’t do that after just one loss.

  27. Scaloni always says what is right! I hope it transmits on the field tomorrow! he has gotten his player selection and formation right to beat Brazil at the maracana… no reason why he shouldn’t beat mexico tomrrow. todosjuntos

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