Ezequiel GARAY could go to the World Cup while veteran Javier MASCHERANO might be left out of the squad.
Ever since Ezequiel GARAY stated that he has not turned his back on the Argentina National Team, there have been rumors that coach Jorge SAMPAOLI could call him up for the World Cup. Per a report by TyC Sports, SAMPAOLI will look at the possibility of calling-up the Valencia man for the World Cup.
One person who might not make the Argentina squad for the World Cup is that of Javier MASCHERANO. With three FIFA World Cup tournaments under his belt, MASCHERANO’s last performance for his country against Spain could see him miss out on a spot. Once more, TyC reported that Jorge SAMPAOLI could not guarantee Javier a spot in the World Cup because of his less than impressive display versus Spain.
Qatar has been invited to play in the 2019 Copa America.
Yes, you read that correctly. Qatar is one of the invited countries/states that will feature in next year’s tournament. According to a report by Globo Sport (who quoted the general director of Aspire Academy, Ivan BRAVO), the team will participate in the tournament which will be held next year in Brazil.
A total of 16 teams will play in the 2019 Copa with a total of six countries being invited (Qatar being one of those invitees). There were rumors early last year that Portugal and Spain would take part in the competition but that idea seems to have fallen through. Instead, the other countries which are rumored to be invited are Mexico, the United States, China, Japan and one of Australia or South Korea.
This would be a test for Qatar, three years before hosting the biggest tournament in the world, the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Here’s what BRAVO had to say about it:
“It will be the first time that Qatar has faced teams such as Brazil and Argentina. It will be a unique opportunity for the national team to gain experience, so that it can compete on the right level at the 2022 World Cup.”
Argentina played Qatar once which came in 2005 as the Albiceleste picked up a 3-0 win with goals coming by Juan Roman RIQUELME, Julio CRUZ and Roberto AYALA. Jorge SAMPAOLI (should he still be coaching the team come next year’s tournament) will (hopefully) have a new set of players for the tournament as this will be a key time in the progress the team will make in attempting to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar.
Here was Argentina’s line-up for that match:
Roberto ABBONDANZIERI; Roberto AYALA, Walter SAMUEL, Juan Pablo SORIN; Maxi RODRIGUEZ, Martin DEMICHELIS, Sebastian BATTAGLIA, Daniel BILOS; Juan Roman RIQUELME; Lionel MESSI and Javier SAVIOLA
The UEFA Champions League returns later tonight with the start of the Quarter Finals and we have the Argentinian players involved!
Some very strong match-ups in the Champions League this round with two English sides facing each other and a repeat of last year’s final. After having knocked out Manchester United, Sevilla turn their attention to Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich with the first leg in Andalucia.
Over in Turin, Paulo DYBALA will have a point to prove after having being recently left out of the Argentina team and he’ll try to prove that point tonight when the Serie A leaders play the current champions Real Madrid. It will be a repeat of last year’s final.
In England, Liverpool host Nicolas OTAMENDI and Sergio AGUERO of Manchester City in an all English duel. It’s one of the heavy favorites in City going up against a team that has been flying under the radar in what should be a cracker of a match.
In Spain, it’s the last of the quarter final matches as Lionel MESSI’s FC Barcelona host Diego PEROTTI and Federico FAZIO’s AS Roma. The Argentina captain is rumored to be starting for the Catalan club.
Champions League First Leg Quarter Finals – Tuesday:
Sevilla (Gabriel MERCADO, Ever BANEGA, Guido PIZARRO, Joaquin CORREA, Franco VAZQUEZ) vs. Bayern Munich
Juventus (Paulo DYBALA and Gonzalo HIGUAIN) vs. Real Madrid
Champions League First Leg Quarter Finals – Wednesday:
Liverpool vs. Manchester City (Nicolas OTAMENDI and Sergio AGUERO)
FC Barcelona (Lionel MESSI) vs. AS Roma (Diego PEROTTI and Federico FAZIO)
The Argentina National Team will play Nicaragua on May.
Nicaragua and not Bolivia will be the opponent on May 29 for Argentina’s farewell match. The game will be played at La Bombonera, home of Boca Juniors.
However, with the final of the UEFA Champions League being on May 26, it remains to be seen if the likes of Lionel MESSI (FC Barcelona), Diego PEROTTI (AS Roma), Federico FAZIO (AS Roma), Gonzalo HIGUAIN (Juventus), Paulo DYBALA (Juventus), Gabriel MERCADO (Sevilla), Ever BANEGA (Sevilla), Joaquin CORREA (Sevilla), Guido PIZARRO (Sevilla), Sergio AGUERO (Manchester City) and Nicolas OTAMENDI (Manchester City) will be available for the match.
October 17 was the last time the Argentina National Team played at La Bombonera which happened to be a 0-0 draw against Peru.
Lionel MESSI saves Barcelona while Paulo DYBALA scored for Juventus.
New match, same script it appears for many Barcelona matches. With Lionel MESSI not taking part in either of Argentina’s friendly matches against Italy and Spain, the little magician was on the bench for Barcelona when they visited Sevilla on Saturday in La Liga.
With Ever BANEGA and Joaquin CORREA both starting for Sevilla, they took a 1-0 lead in the first half and doubled it five minutes into the second half. With the score at 2-0, Ernesto VALVERDE brought MESSI on and the entire match changed.
An instant impact, MESSI was involved in two plays which nearly (and should have) resulted in goals. Luis SUAREZ scored in the 88th minute to pull one back for Barcelona. One minute later, Lionel MESSI was the hero and scored from outside of the penalty area to give Barcelona a 2-2 draw.
Moving over to Italy, just like Mauro ICARDI, Paulo DYBALA was recently left out of the Argentina team and he’s back scoring. A big match against rivals AC Milan, DYBALA scored early, 8 minutes into the match in their 3-1 win. Paulo DYBALA’s shot, just like MESSI’s, was from outside of the area.
Per Opta, both Lionel MESSI and Paulo DYBALA are the players who have scored the msot goals from outside the box in Europe’s top five leagues this season. Both of them have managed 7 goals.
Argentina National Team coach Jorge SAMPAOLI will have his hands full in figuring out who gets on the plane to Russia for the World Cup and who stays in Argentina.
7 – No other player has scored more goals from outside the box than Lionel Messi in Europe’s top five leagues this season (level with Paulo Dybala). Rescuer.
