Lionel MESSI, Javier MASCHERANO and Sergio ROMERO all gave post-match interviews.
It wasn’t an easy match and the referee didn’t help (according to MESSI). But the team got the important 3 points. Following Argentina’s 1-0 victory against Uruguay, the three veterans on the team spoke to the media. Here’s what they had to say:
Lionel MESSI: “We couldn’t play our game du to the referee. It was important to win today. The crowd? They’ve always shown me love. I thank them. If I’ll play against Venezuela? I have some pain in the pubis region. I’ll talk to the doctor…”
Javier MASCHERANO: “We knew how necessary it was to win this match. We had a great first half and after that it was a fight. To start off a new era with a win is always important.”
Sergio ROMERO: “Paulo DYBALA’s red card hurt. But after that it was a great job. We hope to repeat it against Venezuela. Thank God we came back well, we did what BAUZA asked us to do. Now we have to continue like this.”
Edgardo BAUZA’s first match in charge of Argentina wasn’t easy but the team got the win.
Lionel MESSI scores the winner for Argentina in a fiercly fought 1-0 victory against Uruguay. A goal late in the first half by the captain proved to be the only goal of the match but there was a lot more to talk about. The highly anticipated partnership between Lionel MESSI and Paulo DYBALA was short lived due to the latter getting sent off just seconds after Argentina took the lead.
Two extremely soft yellow cards saw DYBALA in tears sent off in the first half and left Argentina to play the entire second half with 10 men. Luckily MESSI had already scored the goal because it would have been very difficult to put another past MUSLERA. Despite being a man down, Argentina didn’t do too bad and with the expected late flurry of attacks by Uruguay near the end of the match, the team was never in real danger of conceding.
A large part of that due to Javier MASCHERANO’s Man of the Match performance. Excellent sharp and crisp crosses, passes, tackles and reading of the game by the number 14 made the job of those around him much, much easier.
Okay everyone here are is the official starting lineup for tonight. It is the lineup that was being anticipated in the media. It is Sergio Romero; Pablo Zabaleta, Nicolás Otamendi, Ramiro Funes Mori, Emmanuel Mas; Javier Mascherano, Lucas Biglia; Lionel Messi, Paulo Dybala, Angel Di María; and Lucas Pratto. What do you guys think? Any predictions?
It’ll be a battle of the river plate on Thursday in Mendoza, with 3 massive points on the line.
The South American World Cup Qualifiers resume on Thursday and the big match of the round are between neighboring countries Argentina and Uruguay. The Uruguayans, who had a disastrous Copa America in June enter the round at the top of the CONMEBOL Qualifying standings tied on points with Ecuador with Argentina right behind them on 11 points in third place.
The two teams however approach Thursday having gone through different summers. Uruguay, with Luis SUAREZ injured, crashed out of the group stages of the Copa America while Argentina suffered a third consecutive tournament loss. Both teams will be looking to put that all behind them on Thursday in Mendoza.
Looking at the last three matches between the two nations, it’s Argentina with two wins and the Uruguayans with one. The 2014 World Cup Qualifying campaign saw Argentina pick up an extremely impressive 3-0 win with the return match ending 3-2 in Uruguay’s favor (although it must be said, Argentina had already secured a spot in Brazil and were fielding a B side).
The last match came at the 2015 Copa America in the group stages with the Albiceleste winning 1-0 courtesy of a goal by Sergio AGUERO. In terms of goals, Gabriel MERCADO is Argentina’s leading goal scorer so far in the Qualifiers with two goals (Lucas BIGLIA, Angel DI MARIA, Ezequiel LAVEZZI and Lionel MESSI all on one goal each). MESSI enters Thursday with a record of 3 goals in 6 matches against the Uruguayans (all 3 of them coming in World Cup Qualifying).
Sergio AGUERO and Javier PASTORE are both out of the Argentina squad due to injury which opens the door for Juventus wonderkid Paulo DYBALA to start. Here’s the (very likely) Argentina line-up:
Argentina Uruguay Lineup
For the Uruguayans, veteran coach Oscar TABAREZ is sticking with big names Luis SUAREZ, Diego GODIN, Edinson CAVANI and Fernando MUSLERA as they are in the squad. Here’s Uruguay’s squad for the match:
Uruguay Squad
Here are the highlights from the last 3 matches:
Argentina 1 -0 Uruguay – Copa America 2015
Uruguay 3 – 2 Argentina – World Cup Qualifier 2013
Argentina 3 – 0 Uruguay – World Cup Qualifier 2012
Both teams will be out to try and secure top spot heading into next week’s matches and if the last 3 encounters between these two teams are anything to go by… We’re in for a treat.
With both teams more or less at full strength, Argentina and Uruguay face each other in the battle of the river plate.
It’s third place in the Qualifiers Argentina hosting top of the table leaders Uruguay in Mendoza. It’s Lionel MESSI against Luis SUAREZ. Who wins, who loses or is it a draw? Vote in the poll below!
