Home Blog Page 973

Argentina play Uruguay, Brazil twice in two months, World Cup qualifiers update

Roy Nemer
-
64

Argentina will play 8 World Cup qualifying matches between September, October and November.

It was confirmed by CONMEBOL on Tuesday that the September and October World Cup qualifying matches will have three matches per month and two in November. For Argentina, the Copa America champions, here is their list of matches:

September: Venezuela (A), Brazil (A), Bolivia (H)
October: Paraguay (A), Uruguay (H), Peru (H)
November: Uruguay (A), Brazil (H)

The month of September will have two away matches in a row, the first against Venezuela and the second against the team they defeated in the Copa America final, Brazil. The third match will be at home against Bolivia.

In October it’s three more games but two home matches. They will once more play the first match away, this time against Paraguay. That is followed by Uruguay at home and Peru at home.

On paper, November brings the most difficult matches as they play Uruguay away and Brazil at home.

Argentina are presently in second place behind the team they beat in the Copa America final, Brazil. The champions are on 12 points with Brazil on 18 points. Behind Argentina are Ecuador on 9 while Uruguay and Colombia are tied on 8 points each. Paraguay are on 7 points, Chile on 5 with Venezuela and Peru on 4 each.

Atalanta agree Cristian Romero fee with Tottenham Hotspur

Roy Nemer
-
21

Atalanta have reportedly reached an agreement with Tottenham Hotspur over the transfer of Cristian Romero.

The saga is nearing its completion and if Fabrizio Romano is to be believed, it’s already completed. Per Fabrizio Romano, Atalanta have accepted the €50 million plus €5 million in add-ons bid from Tottenham. In addition, Romano also stated that Romero will be flying to England in the next 48 hours.

Cristian Romero would join fellow Argentine Copa America champion Gio Lo Celso in the team.

Matias Kranevitter: “I would like to be part of the Argentina team”

Roy Nemer
-
11
  1. Matias Kranevitter has stated that he would like to be part of the Argentina national team.

Kranevitter looks to have finally found his place with Monterrey in Mexico. After a two year spell in Russia with Zenit, the 28 year old defensive midfielder joined Monterrey where he looks to have settled.

A runner up at the 2016 Copa America, Kranevitter has not been part of the national team since 2017 since his Zenit days. Speaking in an interview with Super Mitre, here is what Kranevitter had to say:

“Today, I feel more mature and would like to be part of the Argentina national team. I have been angry for a long time for not being part of the national team. I know that I have to be prepared for when the opportunity arrives.”

Lucas Alario extends his contract with Bayer Leverkusen

-
47

Lucas Alario extended his contract with Bayer Leverkusen until June 2024. After a reported offer from Udinese and some interest from a couple of Spanish clubs, the 28-year-old Argentine striker will continue playing for the German club.

Despite being called to play the Copa America and the Olympics with the national team, Alario missed both competitions due to an injury to his right thigh. The former River Plate man has since recovered from the injury and aspires to have a great season with Leverkusen. With the World Cup qualifiers in September, Alario hopes to continue his good form so he can be taken into consideration by Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni for the matches.

Having arrived at Bayer Leverkusen in September 2017, Lucas Alario has already played 131 official matches with the German team, scoring 51 goals and assisting 16 times.

Nicolas Gonzalez joins Fiorentina from Stuttgart, talks joining, winning Copa America

Roy Nemer
-
5

Nicolas Goznalez has finally landed in Florenca as he joins Fiorentina from Stuttgart.

After winning the Copa America with Argentina, Nicolas Gonzalez now has a new destination. Gonzalez, who joined Fiorentina during Argentina’s Copa America winning campaign, has landed in Florence to join the team.

He joined for a reported €27 million which would see him stay at the club until 2026 where he would earn €2.7 million a year. He ended last season with Stuttgart scoring six goals and assisting twice in 15 Bundesliga matches.

Fiorentina now have three players from Argentina’s Copa America winning team in their squad. The two others being captain German Pezzella and Lucas Martinez Quarta.

Gonzalez spoke in a video on Fiorentina’s website where he revealed that he will enjoy every day in Italy, which was not the case when he was in Germany. In addition, he stated that he spoke with Martinez Quarta and Pezzella a lot but mainly Martinez Quarta about the club prior to joining.

On the flight to Florence, he was asked if he’s ready for the new chapter:

“I’m really happy to be heading to Florence. I can’t wait to get to the club and meet my team-mates and represent Fiorentina, which is amazing for me. It’s something I’ve always wanted, so now that it’s happened, I want to seize this opportunity and show everyone what I can do.

“Now I’m focused on Fiorentina and on proving myself. I’m really happy and have high expectations. I want to ensure the club is as successful as possible.”

If he was expecting to win the Copa America with Argentina:

“It was a one-off experience. When we started out, we didn’t know if we’d be able to win but as the games went by our confidence grew and we started to believe we would win the cup. Luckily we were able to bring it home and everyone was delighted. We loved it and so did our families.”

1...972973974...1,670Page 973 of 1,670