World Cup Profile: Argentina national football team
Can Lionel Messi add the elusive World Cup medal to his cabinet?
Lionel Messi has won everything with club and country, except for the World Cup. He came painfully close in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, but Mario Götze’s strike in the 113th minute in the final broke the heart of many an Argentina fan.
As of now, the only thing between Leo Messi and the title of the greatest footballer ever is the World Cup. If he can lead his country to the title, he can overtake Diego Maradona as as the ultimate and final G.O.A.T.
Argentina have an emphatic manager in Jorge Sampaoli, who led Chile to a historic 2-0 victory over Spain in the group-stages of the last World Cup. But Sampaoli will need help from his generally under-performing players if he is to lead Argentina to a first World Cup in 32 years.
The injury to Sergio Romero is a big blow to the Argentine defense, but Nahuel Guzmán is a good replacement. Nicolás Otamendi is expected to partner Marcos Rojo in the middle of defense, while Nicolás Tagliafico may compete with Cristian Ansaldi for a spot on the left.
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The right defensive flank will be manned by the versatile Gabriel Mercado. In midfield, the evergreen Javier Mascherano will protect the back-line, allowing Lucas Biglia to dictate play and Éver Banega to make surging runs forward.
But Argentina’s strength lies in its forward line. Jorge Sampaoli will be spoiled for choice when it comes to the attacking players. Ángel Di María will occupy the left winger spot, but he may face competition from Boca Juniors starlet Cristian Pavón.
On the right, Lionel Messi’s supremacy is unchallenged, but Eduardo Salvio is an option in case of the requirement for a super-sub. But the most high-profile competition will lie for the spot of center-forward, with three of Europe’s premier forwards, Sergio Agüero, Gonzalo Higuaín and Paulo Dybala in contention.
Other than them, Jorge Sampaoli will also have a lot of other good options on the bench. Federico Fazio, Giovani Lo Celso, Manuel Lanzini and Marcos Acuña all have good seasons with their clubs and may be brought on as a substitute.
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Argentina certainly have a squad which can lift the World Cup at the Luzhniki Stadium, but the question is whether they can gel together as a team, or collapse due to the overcrowding of attacking players in the squad?