Argentina will play Switzerland at the World Cup.
The Argentina national team is going to play against Switzerland in the quarter finals of the World Cup on Saturday. Lionel Scaloni’s team won 3-2 against Egypt and Switzerland got the win against Colombia on penalty kicks.
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| Pos. | Name | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dipta Majumder | 72 |
| 2 | Guille06 | 31 |
| 3 | Everest | 30 |
| 4 | Soumya Lahiri | 23 |
| 5 | M R | 19 |
| 6 | dandai | 11 |
| 7 | Jair | 7 |
| 8 | Farshad Tami | 5 |
| 9 | William Castillo | 4 |
| 10 | Diego_Messi | 3 |
| 11 | Michel Hakim | 3 |
| 12 | dreistreifen | 3 |
| 13 | Som | 0 |
Ufff!! so many hours after our match and after watching so many highlights and analysis, I am able to think properly. Initially, I thought I would congratulate Egypt for the game but the way they started defending with 10 men in the second half and then the kind of aggression and attitude that the poor man’s Zico and that bald f###$r showed on the field and even inside the tunnel, I SAY F#@K YOU. You could not handle the attacks and your players were shitting their pants in the last 20 mins. Take the first flight home you idiots!!
First thing.. whatever happened was emotionally and physically draining but good that it happened within 90 mins, we were looking tired as the game was also played after three days from the 120 min gruelling game that we played. Good we did not need to do that again and also have 1 more day to rest this time.
Secondly no game would be easy but somehow I did not want to face colombia due to their speedy and skillful players. Also they would play with a chip on their shoulders after that copa 2024 final loss. So far so good. Lets think one game at a time.. no worries abt England, Norway, France, Spain nothing. Lets get past switzerland
I don’t want to analyze tactics and game plan as enough has been said, but I want to find answers to simple simple questions:
1) players like Nico Paz, Barco, Senesi, Simeone, and Palacios, are they all arrived with broken legs and can’t kick a ball anymore that Scaloni excluded them or they are there just to do the team’s laundry ?
2) If Scaloni doesn’t trust any of these players or there is no time to test them, then why he didn’t bring other players he trusts them or at least the ones whose experience is credited instead?
3) Why do RDP and MacAllister keep shooting soft balls (no speed, strength, or acceleration) from a distance just to put them in the opponent’s goalie hands?
4 ) Why no one can admit that at the current form and circumstances, Musso should trump Emi Martinez in goalkeeping?
I believe that we need to come out with a complete different team in order to give certain players a breather. After two exhausting and emotional games, i’m old enough to remember 1998 when we won against England in PKs to be boot out the following game against the Netherland. Players like McCallister, Enzo Fernandez, Cuti Romero, lisandro Martinez need to rest if we want to go deep in that competition ( England might be next). Senesi, Otamendi, Medina, Paredes, de Paul, Lo Celso, Palacios would’ve started if it was for me. I’m no soccer coach and clearly not getting paid big bucks to make that type of bold decision but as I said we can’t continue racking up minutes like this. Physically a lot of these players are struggling and three days of rest not enough in my opinion
I second this and tiring legs are too visible. We must inject a couple of young legs at some point in the next match.
I can’t bear watching Argentina play with 4 midfielders without a winger who can provide width. Also I want to see Messi being adventurous on the he right because the middle is sometimes congested. I hope scaloni stop ignoring young players like Simeone, paz and barco who can inject pace and physicality. Lastly it’s just a personal opinion, Facundo medina gives a better defensive cover of the left.
This is true I have nothing against 4 technical midfielders but wen Messi was wide not in front of goal everything changed
Lantaro alverez in a peno box with balls played in is very dangerous
Out of all the teams players and all the matches, its argentina who scored the 3000th goal in world cup history vs Egypt. Isnt it poetic…
We are going through a very high tension emotional journey and somehow we are still alive. But to think objectively on few topics…
1. Lionel Messi
The worshipping is going on in the media. Rightfully so. He is delivering. But someone has to tell him to scale down. STOP taking penalties, every freekick and corner kicks. He loses the ball almost 90% of times on 50-50 scenario and results in a counter attack. He still has his attacking threats and is scoring goals. He will play 90 mins, but someone needs to tell him to shred some responsibilities. It is getting too predictable.
On penalties, he was never good. Neither for Barcelona or Argentina. Someone mentioned he is chasing records with penalties. I don’t think that is the case. He never chased personal records, but I believe he feels its his responsibility to take penalties for the team. He should just tell Lautaro or Alvarez to step up now.
2. Team
Very average team with very average performance. Some changes are required. I would rather take a 0-1,1-2 type to loss to Swiss than getting humiliated by England or France like Brazil got against Germany. Or us against Germany in 2010. Trust me this is possible. What would I do, though I have zero qualification as a coach :), however…
Move Licha to left back, at least to start the game. Play Ota and Cuti in center. Molina and Simone/Montiel to share the right back. It eats up multiple subs as we don’t have a solid back 4 that can reliably play 90-120 mins.
I would start Nico at the left. Almost like a midfielder. Bring Barco and Paz as subs as needed. So, something like…
Dibu; Molina, Cuti, Ota, Licha; Paredes, Enzo, Maca; Nico, Alvarez, Messi
Subs: Monitel or Simone for Molina, Barco and Paz in the middle, Lautaro upfront and then any other is emergency
GK
Very surprised by serious decline of Dibu. He is looking like Romero or Pato. He can barely save anything. Not sure we have an option now, but his time is over. Feels like even I can score. All you need to do is to keep it in goal. His reflexes are gone. He was never a world class GK, but was way better than what we typically have, but thats coming to an end too.
A BIG refresh (done at right pace) needed after the worldcup by Scaloni and team. Else we will be like Brazil.
DEBU is a amazing keeper the issue is like everyone else his freezing from romance passion fear BEING ARGENTINIAN
Scaloni KICIED This SHIT OUT OF THEM ITS ONE Of THE GREAT THINGS HE DID
BUT SADLY HE LIKE THE REST OF THEM returned to stereotype
Finally someone said it. Argentina missed Otamendi badly. I’m not saying he should be playing, but the void is massive. Licha is great, but he’s undersized for a CB, especially when your fullbacks, in Montiel, Molina, and Tagliafico are also on the shorter side. Otamendi has his flaws, but he was great in defending crosses. He put a solid performance against Netherlands last WC. He was winning all the aerial battles. Now, every cross, corners, and setpiece are a threat for Argentina.
Argentina will have a tough time with Switzerland, England/Norway, especially Haaland
I am saying Otamendi should play. It’s not only about his height or heading ability, it’s his leadership in the backline. I myself as a defender can clearly see that missing leadership in the back four.
This Argentina team is capable of beating anyone or losing badly. Many are providing tactical analysis, I won’t do that, for me our biggest rival is ourselves. We dug our own hole with the conceded goals and then had to use every inch of Argentine resilience and grit to win. That kind of emotional rollercoaster is unsustainable for much longer.
You know what’s gonna happen now: every pundit, everyone except some Argentina fans, will write off Argentina’s chances of beating Switzerland, Norway, and England to reach the final. To be honest, I like that. When people doubt Argentina, I’ll enjoy our team being underdogs based on people’s opinions.
Actually to my surprise, some UK and Ireland pundits of all people are praising Argentina and Messi, Ian Wright
and Roy Kean were especially complimentary. Other are saying that Argentina are yet to face a serious team which will be the real test, but even those acknowledge that it is hard to write us off and we are a nightmare to play against.
Bingo we have a full house here’s your Christmas hamper
Winning card
Argentina are not bring beaten there doing this TO THEMSELVES stop TURNING GO STONE around to your own box in fear no one else is doing it stop catch 22 ing your own shit stop doing this insane shit on repeat every game
The ref blew his whistle MOVE YOUR ASS
Every single Argentina player all 11 of them were stop there like statuettes that first goal same capes second goal
Also why retreat to your own box gather there arms behind backs for no game balls form a static line and expect the other team to just let you of
Real life doesn’t work like that
Tackle – kick – boot the ball – play out – play for a throw in DO “””something””” don’t just stand there fondling yourself I said Argentina will do it again after cape game because they just will not stop the insanity repeat shit that’s in there nature statues don’t defend goals defenders defending do
Brother, what in the blue hell are you saying? You’ve been TRASHING the team from the moment you showed up here and you absolutely have nothing positive to say! Your English and spelling are total sack of monkey crap, we couldn’t understand jack sh*t what you’re trying to say. Can’t you spell??!!
@Roy @Osvaldo get rid of this fool from Mundo Albiceleste.
It S a Argentina culture thing the entire Argentina national team history is full of this collapsing
Argentina did the exact same thing vs cape vs France vs holland vs Australia
No one’s no body’s doing maradonas thru are midfield and back line
Or no body’s around are box are defending is frozen and extremely weak any tiny chance goes in one tiny chance goal
2 x Egypt 2 x cape 1x Jordon
2 x holland
We have this weird tendency to collapse totally and utterly for no DAMB reason at all
Are you a Argentina fan because your clearly lacking in history and facts
Watch Argentina in the 90s 2000s etc etc utterly collapsing in fear Ronaldo R9 sneezed Argentina jumped like they got shot show me any other team at any WC or copa that does this weird shit
They have shat the bed 5 x in three games in case you didn’t notice
Not tactical not lacking ability not out played
Just freezing up
It’s why wept had that run at us like maradona or done shit
Everyone froze up and watched him run that’s not football that’s
Emotions FUKING UP YOUR HEAD
I second this. Please remove this clown from the forum. He’s made it an unreadable mess by constantly spamming endless yapping and gibberish.
@Roy @Osvaldo
For me Parades was the man of the match. He was everywhere and blocked counter attack , won ball so many times . Mac alister did well in attacking position . Enzo was avg apart from the goal he was so horrible in the first half. Molina montial both wasnt good enough. Molina offered nothing in the def. Lisandro needs to be more careful. The 2 goals were from his marked man.
I think de paul should be replaced with simeone if or maybe with Lo celso. We badly need a goalscorer apart from Leo. Regarding penalties , Leo should work on it a bit more. Or Julian / Lautaro will be a good penalty taker.
Molina offered nothing in defense? We were not watching the same game. Molina was rock solid defensively. He won most if not all the 1v1s. The Egyptians were also losing the sprint battle to Molina. He ran faster and won those balls back.
I agree on De Paul. He offered nothing offensively and defensively. If Paredes can perform like this for hopefully the next three games, then De Paul should be dropped for Lo Celso. I highly doubt Scaloni will drop De Paul without Messi’s approval.
Why are you making stupid comments like this, claiming Scaloni needs Messi’s approval to drop De Paul?
Mascherano, who got the Inter Miami job because of Messi, benched Messi’s best friend Luis Suarez for large parts of the season. That’s at a club with a much more relaxed environment, built around veteran players to chill in their last days. Sampaoli benched aguero who was another messi’s longtime buddy in world cup game against France
Do you really think Scaloni, coaching Argentina at the highest level, has to ask Messi for permission before making tactical decisions?
It’s not stupid comment. I don’t know how that’s even an argument. You really don’t think Messi influences most decision? He’s Messi and the captain of the team. The decision to dropped Suarez was a no-brainer. Suarez was just awful and playing through injuries. It was obvious that he couldn’t even run. Is De Paul awful? No. Is he bad, yes.
Sampaoli was a different area, different Messi, and different Argentina.
If Scaloni plans to dropped De Paul going into a game, Messi has a say. This is Messi. He’s as influential as Tom Brady and LeBron James in making decisions for the team. That’s not even a debate. Messi has a greater understanding of the game than Scaloni himself.
Suarez was still making a big impact and scoring goals, yet Mascherano regularly subbed him off for pressing and tactical reasons. And guess what? Messi didn’t interfere because he lets the coach do their job.
Yeah, I really don’t think Messi influences most decisions and idk why its so surprising to you . Messi is the captain, so what? Selecting the team and making tactical decisions aren’t part of a captain’s job. I think you read too many Twitter comments, buddy. Messi has no say in those decisions, and he doesn’t influence Scaloni’s job. Scaloni has said that himself.
Stop making foolish comments like that. De Paul is a pressing machine, and that’s one of the main reasons Scaloni keeps playing him. Paredes is arguably Messi’s second closest friend in the squad, yet he lost his starting spot to Enzo and Mac Allister for the last four years. So did otamendi to licha martinez. If Messi really put friendships ahead of what’s best for the team, he wouldn’t have let Otamendi, Paredes or Suarez lose their places.
If Argentina are going to reach the semifinals, the chemistry that won us everything has to come back. Right now, the midfield and defense aren’t connected at all.
Mifield is letting opponents string together too many passes and carry the ball the entire length of the pitch before our defenders are even engaged. When they arrive near the box , the back line looks totally disorganized, lost and out of position. Licha has been caught out twice from almost identical situations , Medina multiple times. Licha is a much better defender than that, but when your midfield leaves the gates wide open, even elite defenders are going to struggle.
At this point , I would switch to a back three, with Nico.G and Simeone as wing-backs. They will provide the speed we are desperately lacking and threat from both flanks! No point relying on Molina and Montiel , they both look like they have zero motivation and still injured. Tagliafico can come off the bench depending on the situation of the game. He was excellent against Egypt though!I would also take Depaul out of the starting xi and use him off the bench, where his experience can help us see out games.
The goals we conceded against Cape Verde and Egypt both came from the same pattern of errors the midfield allowed oppositions drive straight at our defense. Once the defenders were beaten, which has been numerous times , Emi offered very little. He’s going through a worst run of form, and the combination of a leaky midfield, shaky defending, and statue goalkeeping is exactly why teams like Cape Verde and Egypt had us in desperate situations. Emi needs to step up!! He has let us down multiple times. We all thought Scaloni would fix these issues after CV game but it became even more worse against Egypt! At one point we were playing with 2 CB and one RB in the back against Egypt out of desperation despite opponents running wild and free into our defense!
I mentioned before the game vs Egypt that Paz, Barco, and Simeone needs to see some minutes in that game, but none got them. At this point, they’re not even considered as subs, but simply emergency players (in case of injuries)
Aside from Almada, I’m sorry but RDP needs to join him after this. He’s got the heart to press and track, but dammit he just can’t be at his physical best. Abysmal performances thus far.
Enzo great header to win the game, but that doesn’t write off his horrible display in the first half. Losing the ball, misplacing passes, terrible awareness. I just hope that goal brings back to Enzo we know, love and adore.
Molina and Montiel, pick your poison. I’m genuinely scared of our RB position. Licha was having a bad day at the office honestly, day and night difference from his performance against Cabo Verde. Tagliafico won the penalty, great pass to Alvarez but shot was saved, has some attacking display and he was good, except that he couldn’t do jack to stop the 2nd (cancelled) goal by Egypt. Dibu wasn’t the Dibu that we knew. While the goals we conceded are just incredible, he has been seriously underwhelming.
Macca played fine, tried to get some offense. Alvarez the pressing machine, took the ball from Salah to set up Lautaro for Enzo’s winner. The GOAT missed a pen, but bailed out the team yet again.
Gonzalez is a damn necessity now, I’m not even joking. Some wingplay was desperately needed and he provided that when he was introduced.
We love Scaloni for the trophies he brought us to, but I can’t deny the fact, that he was clueless against Egypt. Is Switzerland a blessing in disguise for us, I don’t know. Easy path thus far? Cabo Verde? Took 120min to win 3-2. Egypt? Took a comeback from 0-2 down. On paper it’s easy, but this is the World Cup.
Tagliafico was already subbed off during the 2nd goal of I’m not mistaken.
Messi moving to the right wing really helped both himself and Argentina. Out wide, he had far more space to take on defenders than he did in the crowded middle, and he was finally able to pull off those dribbles again. His presence on the wing also forced Egypt to commit three players to him, which opened up much more space through the center for the rest of the team. I wonder if Scaloni will use him as a right winger against Switzerland as well, because it could solve both Messi’s role and Argentina’s lack of width at the same time.
The weirdest thing is he moved to the win at the later stages of the game, when he should be MORE tired and slower, but he wasn’t. Both in the Cape Verde game and against Egypt, when he moved wide it looked like we were seeing Messi of 2022. This is unreal.
Messi from 2015? More like . The ball he played to Lautaro yesterday was straight out of his “Ankara Messi” days against Bilbao. He made a similar run against Cape while playing on the right wing. It really shows he still has it, but he needs to be in the right areas where there’s more space to dribble past defenders, not in the middle where there are too many players crowding and marking him.
Just looked up catch 22 in a dictionary
There was a picture of DEBU and ate defenders standing there doing nothing a before and a after
Exactly. Scaloni is far too dependent on the old guard of players, and we should not forget that during the 2022 World Cup, introducing Julián Álvarez, Enzo Fernández, and Alexis Mac Allister seemed more like a forced necessity than a planned decision. Right now, Rodrigo De Paul should be dropped, and Scaloni should place his trust in Nico Paz, Valentín Barco, and Giuliano Simeone.
Argentina should switch to a 3-5-2 formation to cover its defensive weaknesses, because Argentina’s left and right defenders are simply not effective enough. Giuliano Simeone and Nico González should be used as wing-backs.
With the kind of performances Argentina showed against Cape Verde and Egypt, they would be eliminated by Switzerland.
Exactly, I’ve said this before that Paz, Barco and Simeone HAS to see some minutes against Egypt, and now that we’re in the quarters, I don’t ever think we’ll see them play at all, unless maybe we’re comfortably leading.
Expect same kind of match vs Switzerland plus they are more physical and have better players in midfield.
After we cruised through the first 3 matches, the knock out games are rollercoaster rides until the final whistle. Emotions run riot and range from joy to depression, frustration to euphoria. Glad we scraped through, but man do we make it difficult for ourselves.
A few takeaways
Defence is no longer solid. Molina is a complete disaster. Wish Villareal captain Juan Foyth was there to fill the huge hole that is the RB position. We are also vulnerable in the air. Future opponent strikers Ebolo and maybe Kane or Haaland will surely notice that.
Scaloni is too emotionally involved with the players. The interview after the game tells the story. The coach needs to be analytical and rational to make the right decisions. His bond with the players is so strong that he sticks to the familiar names. Creativity (LoCelso, Paz) or youthful energy (Barco, Simeone) are not being used.
Messi had an off day. He missed a penalty, made wrong passes and lost possession many times. But somehow, he delivered the pass to Romero for the first goal and scored the second with all the power that was left in his tired body. It really is turning into an unbelievable story.
Dibu is no longer the rock he was in 2022. True that he could not do much about the goals, but his invincible aura is gone.
Most European newspapers report about the injustice done to Egypt. The disallowed second goal, the penalty that should have been given to Egypt right before the 3-2, Romero not getting a card et cetera. Not sure what to make of it, but we surely cannot complain about the referee and VAR. I guess Tapia called Trump just in time 😊
Romero with the first goal. Just like against Cabo Verde he is the warrior that goes first into battle.
Paredes. What a tackle at 2-2. Wow! He really saved our asses.
What next?
Switzerland will be very tough to beat. They have a solid defence and physically strong strikers upfront. However, they often lack imagination and are one of the most boring teams to watch. We need to strengthen our defence, especially against crosses, corners and free kicks. Maybe start with Otamendi instead of DePaul in a 3-5-2 system? With our reliance on Messi, we better pray he does not have another off day on Saturday. I would like to see creative and energetic players, but I guess I will have to wait until after the WC.
P.S. Thinking of the future. Apart from the Copa 2028, we are looking at 4 years of friendlies as we are already qualified for WC 2030.
How are we qualified for WC 2030?
host nation !
The most idiotic WC and if you thought this one is bad, just wait.
Allegedly it will be in Spain, Portugal,, Morocco, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.
BTW, as good as the thought of not worrying about qualifying for the WC, it’s not good either since there is no urgency to win
Cuti,Otamendi and lisandro in defense
Paredes,mac,enzo,le celso,nic gonz
Messi ,Alavarez
Can we try with musso and I am not sure about his penalty saving capabilities.
If he is not that great and if match extends till penalties,sub him a couple of mins before final whistle.
Sub : Barco for Mac
Simeone for enzo
Lautaro for Alavarez
Those goals were not Emi’s fault. They came from a very close range not easy for any GK. Dibu looks so confident to me. He can really make difference.
3-5-2 will be good formation since our RBs are underperforming
A 50/50 peno spot record at the WC isn’t a off day it’s poor display
Stop hunting meaningless records have a more competent taker take the peno
The defence is fine it’s the human element that’s wakadoodle adding another STATUE WILL NIT CHANGE ANYTHING
ITS A ATATUDE PROBLEM and fear you fro not allow mino teams players to score from what you would consider not even a chance
Or for average joes to maradona thru your team without challenge that’s a attitude problem not a defence problem stop freezing do your job statues cannot defend shit
world cup is different then club football and other football, this is why we see a lot of giant falls unexpectedly, i think in world cup football team spirit and team individual quality is main important things, if you can play as a team you can give surprise any big team, this is how small team surprises big teams when there team spirit is in the hold, and if you mixture of both team spirit and team individual quality then you can truely contender for the title, may be suddenly argentina as team clicked but still this team individual quality very downgraded compare to the previous world cup and time to be improve, majority of people knew from previous world cup argentina has wing back problem, not upto the standard, also dimaria missing, there was plenty of time to be improve, but it didn’t happen, even the first goal comes it was the quality of romero, that first goal breaks the jinx, i don’t see argentina as a no.1 deserving title contender, i see franch and spain is little ahead then them, forward can win a match but defence can win a title, sometimes attack is the best defence, major underperforming facts of argentina is wing backs, wing backs operate on both attack and defence, did anyone saw effect of messi when jordi alba in play or dani alves in play, i think prestianni could be better choice then almada
prestianni ball control and promptness with ball much better then almada,
alvarez
prestianni,maclister,paredes,paz,messi
medina still not bad choice after seeing his first game/tagliafico lisandro romero ………. i would invent or chose here tall right back , this suppose to be squad for this world cup
This is a historical comeback. While watching the game, someone said Argentina never came back from 2goal deficit in a worldcup game. It felt like It’s all over. I will not see messi play another worldcup match. But then the resurge began. Argentina made a comeback I am sure to rewatch thousands of time if Argentina goes through.
The concern is, our defense is leaking goals. 4 goals in two matches. Dibu does not seem like is in beast mood. Against Switzerland, or potentially against England, we have to be much more composed, balanced. Comebacks don’t always happen. We might just run out of luck and moments of brilliance. What we will never run out of is execution of plan, application of grit, and exhibition of our potential.
What people like that seem unable to understand is this Argentina has broken every curse footballing gods punishment we had ALL OF THEM
Everyone of those goals was weak as piss to no other team at the WC would do that it’s Argentina doing the EMBARESMENT MODE shit that has also plagued them
Stop freezing stop being scared DO YOUR JOB
What A Game What A Result!!!
Some fans are absolutely bashing this team and Scaloni after tonight. I understand the nervousness and frustration but not any hate.
Did we play our best football? No. Did we show once again why this team has won everything over the last few years? Absolutely YES.
Kudos to Egypt for playing like they did… but frankly Argentina was always threatening and superior. Around the 70th minute, they seemed to believe they had weathered the storm. Against this Argentina side, that’s often when the storm truly begins.
Key match points:
Messi. Yes, he missed the penalty. Yes, it broke him for a moment. But what happened after that was the mark of greatness. The last 20 minutes were played by a man possessed. The pass to Lautaro… that was 28-year-old “Ankara Messi”. And more than the assist that never became a goal, it was his energy, pressing and determination that reignited the entire team. When your captain refuses to accept defeat, everyone follows.
Paredes. My Man of the Match after Messi. What composure throughout the game! And that single-handed defensive recovery against two/three Egyptian players… if that move had ended in a goal, we were probably going home. We keep talking about new midfielders, but once again Paredes reminded us why he remains so valuable in an Argentina shirt.
Tagliafico. Our dependable samurai. What a warrior. If Julián had converted that outrageous pass after Tagliafico’s run, we’d probably be talking about one of the assists of this World Cup.
De Paul. I honestly hope this World Cup finally ends the unnecessary criticism. He in Argentina shirt is a beast – off and on the ball, his intensity and his understanding of this system are priceless.
Romero and Licha. Yes, Licha could have done better on the first goal. But after that? Pure grit. Both of them defended with heart and character when we needed it most. And yes, Romero somehow always finds a way to break the deadlock when it matters.
Mac Allister & Enzo. Macca’s header deserved better. Enzo’s winning header showed tremendous composure under immense pressure. Of course they could improve in phases, but neither deserves even a fraction of the hate they’re receiving.
Julián & Nico González. They emptied the tank. Julián was unfortunate not to score after Tagliafico’s brilliant play, but what impressed me most came on the winning goal. After almost 90 minutes of relentless running, he still had the energy and awareness to nick the ball away from Salah before it broke to Lautaro. Those little moments decide tournaments.
And finally…
Lautaro Martínez. Please… stop judging every striker only by goals. His impact after coming on completely changed the game. His header from Messi’s cross was an extremely difficult chance and could easily have become one of the assists of the tournament.
But the winning goal perfectly sums up why he is one of the smartest forwards in world football. When the ball reached him, for a split second I thought he had taken one touch too many by allowing it to drift slightly wider. Ninety-nine percent of forwards try to become the hero there – and try to dart into the goal. Then you realise what he was doing. He wasn’t slowing the attack—he was slowing the moment. He was allowing support to arrive. Lautaro chose the team over himself, waited for the perfect moment and delivered a pinpoint cross for Enzo. That’s not hesitation. That’s experience. That’s footballing intelligence. Please understand who Lautaro is before writing him off.
As for Molina, I thought he didn’t have a great game. But he still worked tirelessly and didn’t make any major mistakes defensively. Then again, not having a great game in this Argentina team often gets mistaken for having a poor one. :P. The only thing I’d say is that attempted slap on the Egyptian player. Thankfully it went unnoticed because it could easily have been a red card. At this stage of the tournament, we simply cannot afford moments like that. Scaloni should give him a piece of his mind on this.
Regarding Scaloni, one can understand most of his decisions tonight. But personally, I might have brought on Lo Celso —or Nico Paz— a little earlier because both are exceptional in tight spaces against a low block. If anyone had to make way, perhaps Mac Allister. I also wondered whether Simeone instead of Montiel might have offered something different. But at the same time, with Egypt constantly threatening on transitions and Nico González already covering the left, and Lautaro had entered instead of RDP (an attacker instead of midfielder) and that could just as easily have backfired. So am not critical about it.
I also think it would have been unfair to throw Barco or Senesi into a game that was already on fire. Those are players you introduce when the game allows them to settle, not when every second feels like a final.
Lastly, I don’t agree with those saying we were “lucky” or that the game was decided by refereeing. Licha was clearly fouled. Julián cleanly won the ball from Salah before he went down.
One final thought…
Please don’t bash this team. Other squads may look stronger on paper. Some may even be closing great games. But I genuinely don’t think there’s another team in this World Cup that combines technical quality with this level of resilience, belief and refusal to surrender.
We may not be at our footballing peak at the moment — but we’re not far away either. If those last twenty minutes were any indication, when this team smells survival, something special happens. The passing, the movement, the intensity… for a brief spell it reminded me of those magical first 70 minutes against France in the 2022 Final.
Keep the faith.
VAMOS MUCHACHOS! 🇦🇷
I have analysed the match..and found 2 big issues…
1. De Paul…He has lost it. Tired. Finished product. We are in QF of the WC. 5 matches done. You can remember any moment from him other than that long pass?
He’s not performing. Nothing offensive..almost nothing defensive..Just sitting deep and long pass. ? We have better option for that role..! And he can improve our defense, with aerial ability…!
De Paul OUT and bring in Otamendi..!
2. RB..not at all clicking…did you remember any moment in this WC..anything our RBs done well..defensive or offensive..nothing…another non performing spot..You can introduce a new player who can do better offensively and cant be worse than current RBs.?
I think Sineone can..!
Molina out…Simeone IN.
Still, I will go with Alvarez as starter.. and bring Lautaro and Nico as sub..!
As it comes…its a 5-3-2..!
———–Romero-Ota-Lisandro———–
Simeone-‐‐–‐‐——————–Tagliafico
———-Enzo-Paredes-Mac—–‐———-
‐———Messi———Alvarez—————-
Nico Paz and Barco can be tested in this formation.
Nice starting 11
Macca’s missing header was from De Paul’s cross I believe?
Out of context, how do you add a DP (profile picture)? I can’t see my profile details either. I used to comment here a long time ago. Previously, there was a profile section where we could set a DP and cover photo. Has something changed here?
I have one question: Does Messi have to take all of our penalties? The opposing goalkeeper has probably studied his penalty-taking technique inside and out. Why not surprise the opponent by letting someone else take it? Wouldn’t that be a good idea, just to catch the goalkeeper off guard before the penalty? And despite all of Messi’s alien-like abilities, he isn’t necessarily the best penalty taker.
I have a gut feeling that the moment this team doesn’t have Messi to rely on, they may wake up and take more responsibility. They seem to have the mindset that Messi will solve every puzzle. I’m not saying that’s good or bad, but will that approach work against stronger opponents in 2026?
Other players need to take more initiative in front of goal. Lautaro and Alvarez have been a huge disappointment in this World Cup so far. They are capable of scoring goals and should occasionally take the burden of scoring off Messi’s shoulders. It might happen in the next match—we never know.
I know it’s stressful, but I’m enjoying these last two wins, knowing there are no more easy games. Argentina is entertaining the world, and many people are having a really bad time; they wanted Argentina out since the World Cup started. Argentina has produced the best two matches in this World Cup, and no team has been able to do what Argentina did, coming back from 2-0 to 3-2 with ten minutes to go in a World Cup knockout match. No one has done that before Argentina. Look how boring the Spain vs. Portugal match was. I have a good feeling that we will beat Switzerland, so what I’m trying to say is we are very lucky that we won the World Cup just three years ago, so enjoy it. Don’t pay attention to those negative comments.
Belgium came back from 2-0 down against Senegal.
The Belgium match went into extra time, I’m talking about within 90 minutes or normal play.
Roy you should add notifications to ppl’s accounts on the site so ppl know when someone replies to their comments. Would help with discussions since old comments can get lost in the previous posts
Right. This feature has been missing from this site.
With everything done and dusted yesterday, I needed a break. This World Cup campaign for Argentina is really stressing me out. The level of stress is absurd. It’s understandable to struggle against teams like France, England, or Spain, but teams like CPV and Egypt should not be pushing us to the edge.
There are no easy opponents anymore. Luckily, we have avoided Colombia, who know us inside out. I would rather face Switzerland than Colombia, as Colombia are far more dangerous.
I don’t know how Scaloni is going to figure this out. He can’t make too many changes either. For me, this is going to be his biggest test—how he gets this team back to where it was before the World Cup. Something is missing. I don’t know what it is, but we keep struggling against smaller opponents. If that’s the case, how on earth are we going to compete with England, France, or Spain? I have no idea.
The players have a big heart, and we already know they will give everything for the national team. But we have to play better. I don’t know if changing one or two players here and there will make much difference. We still haven’t figured out a settled starting XI, and it’s already the quarterfinals. I think we are the most unsettled team in the World Cup.
Two solutions depending on how Scaloni wants to go:
1) Nico Paz in for Mac Alllister. Keep Paredes or maybe drop for Barco if need be
2) Paredes dropped for Barco AND Mac Allister dropped for Simeone are the best solutions I see
Scaloni probably just brings in Nico Gonzalez if anything though 😭
That’s a huge change to make at this stage of the World Cup. I don’t think Scaloni is going to change that much. Nico and Barco are still young and haven’t played much for us so far. Throwing them into the starting lineup in a World Cup quarterfinal could be so overwhelming for both.
Simeone, meanwhile, might work because he has been part of this setup and has already played a few matches for us. Simeone on the right wing and Nico on the left wing could add a different dynamic to the team.
But who would we drop then? Molina is the obvious choice, but who would defend on the right side? Simeone can’t be expected to track back and run like Di María. Other problem is we may have to drop someone else from Midfield to accommodate Nico Gonzalez.
Nico is neither a winger nor a box-to-box like Macca. I don’t see who Nico can replace other than Messi
Fortune favours the brave brother. Scaloni made that change too with Enzo and Alexis last World Cup and they had similar level of minutes to Nico Paz, prior to that. Nico Paz even has a goal for us lol. Just 1 CHANGE in Paz for Mac Allister is what we need.
We can’t have BOTH Nico Gonzalez and Giuliano Simeone in any lineup. It can only be one or the other, because we need both Messi and one of the strikers (Alvarez or Lautaro) and a two man midfield would be overrun by physical midfields.
Another reason, we can’t play with both is since we play without a strict defensive structure immediately after we lose the ball. We’re quite disjointed out of possession, but because we pack ourselves together and play with small distances with the ball we can aggressively counter-press since we’re all closer together and we can recover back into a defensive shape. BOTH our wingers playing would probably create too large distances between our players and we can’t recover the ball as easily AND also give the ball away since more of our players will be isolated and we can’t press the opposition back as effectively. Heck that may be why we don’t even bother with any wingers in the first place.
I’m very much leaning towards the Paz move instead rn
From devastation, frustration, and doomsday posts… to waking up with belief again.
Probably the story of Argentina supporters for the last 48 years. 😄 Yes, even in 1978 final when Netherlands equalized in the 82nd minute, we suffered. We suffered a lot.
Switzerland will be a different game, with different challenges and renewed hopes. But one thing remains — this team has still not found a way to make our lives a little easier.
Every four days, we go through the same emotional roller coaster: watching Messi and Co. suffer, struggle, and somehow script another comeback. The question is — can we finally break this pattern against Switzerland?
There are some big questions for Scaloni to solve.
How do we deal with Switzerland’s height and aerial threat? Egypt already exploited Licha’s height disadvantage. One way is to stop the crosses before they come in — pressing aggressively, closing wide areas, and defending proactively away from our box. Our arch-rivals actually did that quite well against Norway for a long period. The moment they failed, Haaland punished them.
How do we make our strikers start striking? So far, the goals have come from Messi, defenders, and now even midfielders. But at some point, we need Álvarez and Lautaro to rediscover their finishing touch. How does Scaloni unlock them?
How do we solve the right-back puzzle? Is Palacios an option worth exploring?
And when the Enzo–De Paul–Mac Allister combination is struggling to impose itself early and we are dragging games into late drama, is it time to introduce at least one surprise element in the starting XI — someone like Barco who can change the rhythm?
As fans, we will keep guessing. Everyone will have their own formation, their own solution, their own favourite eleven.
But Scaloni is the one who has to find the answers.
Because every match will not give us late miracles. Every day luck, fine margins, and referee calls may not fall our way.
This team still has a Croatia 2022 type of performance inside them. The quality is there. The spirit is there.
Now it’s time to shake off the rust, remove the doubts, and remind everyone what dominant Argentina football looks like.
Let’s be brutally honest: even if we edge past Switzerland…likely through another moment of Messi brilliance…our current physical profile is nowhere near the level required to contain England or France. In transition defense, aerial duels, and high-intensity pressing, we are consistently second-best.
Against those sides, we cannot dominate through athleticism or tempo. Our only viable path is tactical outmaneuvering-controlling space, dictating the game state, and exploiting structural weaknesses rather than physical ones. That means disciplined low-block breaking, compact mid-blocks without the ball, and surgical attacking patterns that don’t rely on outrunning anyone.
Scaloni understands this. He’s already shown adaptability in big games (2022 final vs France, 2024 Copa). But tactics alone are fragile…they require perfect execution from every unit. And we cannot keep asking Messi to be the difference-maker in every clutch moment. At 39, his role must shift to a pulse-controller, not a one-man engine. He’s given more than enough…now the system must carry the load, not the other way around.
Scrolling through the comments from when Argentina were 2–0 down was embarrassing. Half the clowns in this forum don’t deserve to be called Argentina fans.
People were attacking Messi and accusing him of chasing records when he literally asked Scaloni to rest him against jordan so younger players could get minutes. Then some claimed the national team was just a circle of friends conspiring to keep newcomers out. Some called Scaloni a lucky fraud who won four major titles purely through luck.
The amount of negativity from some people here is unreal. They store so much negetive energy inside them then wait for the first setback so they can unleash all their garbage on the team.
If you can’t support Argentina during difficult moments, then don’t support them at all. Go find a team that is supposedly perfect. Except you can’t, because every top team struggles. France had difficult matches against Senegal, Norway’s B team, and Paraguay. Spain struggled against Colombia, Cape Verde, and Portugal.
Yet somehow it’s only Argentina that gets trashed whenever they fail to win every game 3–0.
I don’t think there Argentina fan. They’re either fan of other teams or they are professional haters. They spread hatred going to blogs for different teams. You’ll see their accounts are new and have nothing worthy to say. Better to ignore them.
So only Argentina remains, all other South American teams have been eliminated. Messi is so tired and how long he will carry this & also he should let others to take penalties
we are fools we alway says messi+dybala not possible messi+nico paz not possible
And lautaro+alverz not possible oppostion will be thrilled to hear this.. Let them play and attack the boxes with crosses and through balls defence will shivering then🔥
Also Leo plz give penalty to your team mates like u do with barca with the two penalty you took this tournament your face shows how much pressure you are under give penalties to teammates aand score bangers pike you do
Two games now and the opponent’s GK turns into Wolverine from X-Men stopping everything……reminds me of many years ago, 2010WC Copa 2011, 15, 16 and a bunch of qualifiers
Argentina hit the ball straight at the Egyptian goal keeper (Shobeir). Those saves we not exceptional.
In contrast Dibu had no chance with the Egyptian shots.
Very different shots. People are over reacting to Shobeir and Dibu.
I understand people may have mixed feelings about Tim Vickery, but this analysis is a decent one. May watch if interested:
https://youtu.be/dIDjqNDZvc8?is=ytISI-7Yd3w9w6dr
Scaloni is a horrible manager. This guy is always making same mistake. He got saved by Messi again.
Dibu is clearly not 100%. Why is he playing ? He needs to stop being selfish and let Juan Musso play.
C’mon. No goalie on earth could have saved those two shots today. They were both taken at virtually point blank range. The defense is to blame. Not Dibu.
We should have tried that in Jordan match as the qualification to knockouts was confirmed already. Start with musso and may be to have playing time for dibu, substitute musso after 65 or 70 mins.Now,I am not sure if it is a tactical move to bench dibu for musso.But I am sure that dibu is not 100% due to his injury
We need to drop Mac and Molina from starting 11. They are completely out of form and our defense is looking really suspect. We need to go 5 at the back against the stronger teams.
I am sure you just watched the match just like another fan….
Mac was always there to score…yes it didn’t come..but he positioned many time at goal scoring place…even Messi’s goal..I thought Mac scored there already…!
And hes always there to help defense..if you watch a moment that heroic Paredes tackle..? Who was there remaining..one is Mac..!
So..watch closely and analyse…
I’d agree with Undisputed in terms of dropping Macca still though. He was good but we can be even better and for that, we need more dynamic legs in midfield and Nico Paz offers that more than Mac Allister now.
Molina can stay there’s no one really better than him. I wanted maybe Simeone on the right side to be a defensive winger and attacking runner but Scaloni’s going a different direction probably.
Boys…
I cried after they scored the 2nd goal. And I cried after we scored our 2nd.
We struggled a lot these last two games.
I don’t care about how bad we were or about everyone’s analytical expert take on the game…. Teams usually don’t come back in knockout stage of world cups after being 2 down!!!
We did make too many mistakes but we came back and won.
Calls for our goal keeper to be changed? This blog has had some idiots in the past, but cmon.
My only adjustment or critique is that only forwards should be pressing on opposition side such as the spider, rest of team presses midfield.
GG
Agreed. Argentina had been down 13 times by two goals in the WC history but never bounced back. Today was the first time in history it did.
We are not really playing bad. In the first half after conceding goal, Argentina had 4 clear chances – Messi penalty, Messi free kick hit the post, MacAllister free header and Alvarez flick saved by the GK.
It’s just we are conceding easy and sloppy goals. Egypt had three attempts, and scored three goals (on ruled out by offside).
No reckless change of squad will change that. It’s just combination of psychological, concentration laps, and bad forms.
Agreed. Same squad same setup, even same sub order if need be. Maybe the only change is to not bring in montiel as sub and give simeone or barco some time on the right as a sub jn second half. Thank you for the stats!
Only change we need to make is starting Paz over Mac Allister.
Nada mas
Correct. “Conceding easy and sloppy goals” will never win a World Cup. If that doesn’t change, we all know what the result will be.
I hear you friend, all the false information floating around, the envy, jealousy and just blatant hatred and the team still fights.
The team is good and bad at the same time but they have to find a way to better their chances of winning without so much suffering
Scalini isn’t helping matters either the babbling and snot balling
Manage your players stop talking about feelings your spreading creating fear
We thought Cabo Verde and Egypt would be easier than the other teams.
Don’t make the same mistake.
at first I didn’t like the subs but they allowed Messi to go on the right where there was a lot of space and he used it.
we defend very badly against fast counters which needs to be addressed.
Paredes saved our win. Made a Dibu – Kolo Muani like save.
I don’t no how we are going to beat any team playing like this but we are going to do it.
They are easier Argentina freezing is the problem not what the other team do
There isn’t another team that would have A CONCEDED THAT first GOAL B ALLOWED OLD MAN RUN thru the ENTIRE TEAM
THATS not form or stats it’s a mental block
The goals vs cape and EGIPT were not firm or stats or any other baloni
They were players freezing doing nothing being lazy expecting the worse outcome so creating it
Rabbit in the headlights in the road
You cannot start playing 70 minutes after the first whistle
When the world cup started I was sure of couple of things – We will struggle to score goals, and opponents will also struggle to score against us.
I was wrong about the first one because Messi has gone super saiyan. By the way, our second highest goal scorers are all those guys with 1 goal each. Romero would have been second highest with 2 if that cape verde goal wasn’t taken away from him. So basically this is 2014 all over again but somehow Messi scoring like it’s 2012 and he’s in Barcelona.
And the thing about our bad defense is if anybody wants to make a run for it, he will be able to shoot at our goal for free. I have not seen our defense this inept since 2018! I have no idea what is going on with our defense.
I am too tired to talk about the midfield.
My opinion about Argentina team in this WC thus far:
POSITIVES
1. It may surprise you but Argentina is technically most dominant team in this WC. Argentina completed most passes (3,446) and highest pass completion (91%) in the tournament. Arg is 2nd in “Offers to Receive” (2,105), 784 “Offers Between Lines,” 520 “Offers In Behind,” meaning its style is relentless movement and positional intelligence.
2. Argentina has the highest xG in the tournament (11.91), brazil are England are 2nd and 3rd with 10.88 and 10.59. However, our xG conversion rate is 1.18x, makes us 24th. This means Argentina are creating the most chances but not converting as expectation.
3. One of the highest total distances covered in the tournament – almost 57,000 km, ranked 10th in the tournament. This reflects Scaloni’s collective pressing system — every outfield player is required to defend, press, and cover ground, making Argentina as physically demanding to play against as they are technically.
❌ NEGATIVES
1. Argentina is the lowest intensity team in the WC; Ranked 43rd out of 44 teams in avg speed despite all that running. High volume, low intensity.
2. Defense is sloppy and fragile. Cape Verde xG ~0.4, Egypt xG ~0.8 only, but they both scored twice.
3. 80% of the team is out of form. The whole defense is out of form. Álvarez, Lautaro, MacAllister, De paul and Enzo are playing with heart but badly out of form. Messi is making the stat look glossy.
4. We are gassed. Today’s squad average age was 30+, Messi alone ran 10+ km vs Cape Verde, and Scaloni’s pressing system demands full physical output from everyone. This is catching up with us at the worst possible time.
5. Barco and Simeone look like obvious solutions, but Argentina’s system is sieging through positional overload, block movement and line breaking positioning . It’s not clear either player is ready to slot in seamlessly.
6. I miss Otamendi’s leadership in defense, having knowing that he’s mistake prone.
Bottom line, I expect Argentina to win against Switzerland but probably not in Semi against England/Norway, unless suddenly defense become organized and most of our players return to form. Lautaro or Julian need to bail us out in at least one of the matches.
If we manage to win against Swiss, will we play again in Atlanta or will we play in Dallas ?
Atlanta
If you need online stat sheets to understand football you don’t understand football
That’s not your opinion it’s a copy paste
You’re not worthy of a response.
Very interesting. Thank you for posting this.
See there’s two schools of thought with how Scaloni can play it (well 3 if you count what’s actually gonna happen probably).
1) Scaloni’s pretty deadset on this game model and identity that we play with no runners nor pace nor 1v1 threat. For how we play, are runners the best thing? You could argue against it. So in that case we need more presence between the lines. More dynamism. Mac Allister I love for the service but it’s been documented by Liverpool fans and here in England he’s physically not at it anymore and it’s been showing. He’s more sluggish these days. We need a better receiver in between the lines for our combination play. Nico Paz is that. I initially wanted Barco to be added to the midfield in place of Almada as well to sit back and find Paz and Messi between the lines with Enzo and De Paul but Scaloni has opted for Paredes. Paredes is as good a finder as Barco if not better so I don’t mind that at all – the best needle player in the squad when it comes to breaking lines. Swap Nico Paz out for Mac Allister and we’re golden.
2) Or we rip it up and go for something that actually includes pace in behind. We have no width whatsoever. Plus we’re also weak defensively out wide and in transition. However, I feel one way to fix that is to play Valentin Barco as a LCM and drop Alexis Mac Allister to the bench. Now he does two things because of his experience at LB. He can help shore us down out wide where we’re weak, he’s aggressive and runs and presses the opposition. We’re too stale defensively currently and in an attacking sense and Barco can fix that. If Julian has to stay central when we attack, him and Medina/Tagliafico can combine to provide width AND cover for each other. A LHS of Barco – Medina/Tag – Alvarez is much more solid defensively AND can be better attacking-wise. Alexis has been poor this season for Liverpool with Liverpool fans calling for him to be sold since he doesn’t have legs and it showed itself a fair bit today. Barco adds the legs that Mac Allister has lost over the last year, helping us defensively and in transition along with providing more width out wide.
On a similar note, Giuliano Simeone does a very similar job on the RHS. While I think he’s not that great as a pure winger since I’ve only seen him beat a full back 1v1 once in three years lol… as a defensive winger I’d say there’s no one better in the world than him. He’s an eager presser. He runs and tracks back so that also instantly improves us defensively on the RHS. You’re no longer asking Molina alone to hold width. He has a RHS of Duracell bunnies in De Paul and Simeone helping him out defensively. We’re less likely to get caught in behind on our right side AND we have a threat on that side too.
Enzo I trust more than Mac Allister to carry out the #5 role better, especially if we come up against more physical midfields like against an England – Rice and Anderson would eat Alexis alive in his current form and capabilities. Enzo and Paredes I’d see having more joy as the sitting midfielder.
However, Scaloni’s already come out and said Enzo won’t play any games at the base of midfield since at Chelsea he plays more advanced.
3) Knowing Scaloni he has an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality and something tells me he sees the fact that we won as the reason for saying it ain’t broke and we’ll continue with the same team smh
Or if there’s any change, it’s gonna be Nico Gonzalez being brought in to provide width.
DEBU to concede 5 goals from 2 shots getting his hair done
Argentina to concede 3 goals from 2 non chances before waking up vs Switzerland
I really didn’t want to comment, but our boys were poor today. It looked like they were in cruise mode—there was no hunger.
Starting with Dibu: he’s way too relaxed at the back. That first goal was all about anticipation. He assumed Licha would clear it instead of staying alert. As a goalkeeper, you can’t leave everything to your defenders. You have to anticipate danger.
Don’t even get me started on the defense. Their decision-making against counterattacks is frustrating. Instead of constantly scanning their surroundings to know where the opposition is, they just run back and stop like headless chickens. That second goal would have never happened if Licha simply takes a quick glance over his shoulder. The same thing happened against Cape Verde—the runner came from behind. Defenders, please SCAN.
The attack wasn’t much better. We created chances and got shots on target, but where’s the composure? Too many shots were straight at the keeper. Place the ball into the corners and make him work for it.
We also need wingers who can press, stretch defenses, and cause chaos—players like Di María, Nico González, Álvarez, or Messi when he drifts wide. Trying to force everything through the middle wasn’t working because the midfield was completely crowded. It wasn’t until Messi moved to the right that we finally had a better route to attack. We need more of that.
And finally, for God’s sake, our players need to stay calm after conceding. Once that first goal went in, Licha and Molina completely lost their heads and kept giving the ball away cheaply. I was losing my mind watching it. Just calm the f**k down and play your football.
Totally agree.