Argentina v Sweden 6th February (Friendly) [R]

He was called up in 02, not 98.. Palacio was a good player around that time(still is) no real shocker.

 

sorry I mean 2002

 

Count Messi whatever way you like, but Sabella will definitely count him as a forward. And I'm almost certain that "6th forward" spot is more likely to go to an attacking/creative midfielder.

And Tevez, no matter how good or bad he's playing, I don't see him being called for the WC squad. You can't expect Sabella to all of a sudden take him into consideration when he never has, not for friendlies, not for qualifiers, not for anything... He's not the kind of coach that would take a player without having previously had him for some time in the team, getting a couple of call-ups (even as a sub). So, either there's a big surprise and he calls him for this next qualifiers games, or we can forget about it already, and put the matter to rest.

 

Yeah, I believe Tevez won't make it either, not that he is not good, but it just won't fit. I still recall his expression when Diego subbed him out vs Mexico, shook his head in disgust. At times I love the guy because he represents that fight that is needed but at the end of the day, Carlitos is somebody that will never change his personality no matter what the cause is.

 

^^^ to be fair, nobody wants to be subbed at WC knockout stage especially when you have a chance for a hattrick and scoreline was 3-0 at the time. Although he certainly will be moaning about not being played if he's only on the squad for a plan B or as second string player.

 

So how is Sabella playing Argentina nowadays according to you? If Messi is a forward, there is no playmaker/right mid on the team and a very unbalanced midfield:

Mascherano-Gago(Banega)
---------------------------DiMaria
Messi--Higuain--Aguero

Doesn't this make a lot more sense:
Mascherano----Gago(Banega)
--------Messi-------------DiMaria
------Higuain-----Aguero

 

Yeah, it does makes much more sense and its the way Argentina is playing. But Messi has so much freedom its hard to pin him to a specific position.

What i'm trying to say is that im not discussing so much the position or role Messi has, just telling you what Sabella thinks. If we agree for the sake of the argument here that Messi is a playmaker and not a forward, then i must tell you Sabella will bring just 4 forwards to the WC. But he considers him as such, so it will be 5 (I don't see any "surprise 6th forward" this time around).

 

In the list, I believe Messi + other 4 FW (Aguero, Higuain, Lavezzi + 1)

The positioning of Messi is unpredictable, so I said Argentina alternates between 4-3-3 (usual tactic) and 4-3-1-2 depending on the placement of Messi on the pitch. There are times when Di Maria goes on the left side and Messi backs to help in the construction of the moves and distributing passes.

The team is good and has total conditions to improve until the World Cup. However, another problem is the defense in sides/fullbacks. It is the weakest point of the team.

 

If Zaba can play the way he does for MC, then we will be fine. He played really well against the Swdes. Ansaldi another player who Sabella appears to look at, and Peruzzi who probably will be looked at again(prob not start because of his age but it does not seem big occasions really bother him). Sabella may go with a back 3, because right now he really does not trust the 2 CB's, Negro he probably does, but Fede is quite rusty(due to the lack of playing time with Napoli, but I believe he has moved to Spain). The next 2 games are very important, because personally, I think our WC journey starts right after that. It will give Sabella enough time to figure out what to do, if he wants, Di Maria,Kun,Messi,Pipita on the pitch at the same time vs all the teams, or just certain teams. It will mean, does he want a back 4 or back 3, and let Masche be a bit closer to the backline and let Gago play that true 5 role. You do not want to hit your best till you are about at the WC. Personally, in my opinion, we have played good in the last few games, but we could be better in all aspects of the game. From the forwards,MF, defense and GK.

 

How do you guys feel about Icardi?

 

He havent play in NT so there's no way to rate him yet, unless he scored 2 consecutive hattrick for his club

 

I don't like Zabaleta. Of course, the blame is not his alone, but in every game he failed in defensive work. Against Chile, offensive in the first half, he gave many spaces in their area and had fault in single opponent goal. In matches against Saudi Arabia and Sweden, the team suffered less due to lack of offensive momentum of the opponents. However, Zabaleta did well against Uruguay, perhaps because he hadn't so much work.

Campagnaro also committed some flaws. I don't like Rojo. Clemente Rodriguez is horrible. Really, I would like to see other fullbacks recendo opportunities to play.

The excitement of the games with Argentina is natural. The team has displayed flaws in all sectors, but has shown that the best counter-attack in the world. I would like to see this lineup kept, but understand that you need to give consistency to the defense.

 

Higuain is good enough for any NT. 4 goals in 4 matches in his first WC, scored an equalizer and the penalty against Uruguay in CA, currently join top scorer in WC qualifier with Messi and Suarez. Only 4 Higuain's goal was scored in friendly (includes Spain and Germany), the rest came in competitive play.

So what if he scored against Korea? a hattrick is a hattrick. David Villa scored twice against Honduras but he didnt score against Holland and Germany. Ronaldo scored 15 goals in WC only 3 of his goals was scored against heavyweight, 1 against Holland in 98 and 2 against Germany in 02, the rest against Japan and the likes. Italy won the WC and their best striker only has 3 goals and it was their defenders that scored the winner in 2006 semifinal and final.

With solid defence and some decent midfielder, having Aguero, Higuain and Messi are more than enough to win any tournament.

 

Well, my point is we've yet to see him play in NT so how do we know he's good in NT or not? based on club form, there are many players in any position that deserve a chance.

 

At his position, it's not that difficult to make a judgement. He is a natural 9 that will go and look for for goals. He will play the last defender and slip in and bounce on rebounds. It's not like it's Pastore where this is no real spot for him.

And he has already made up his mind on who he wants to play for, so it's not really needed for him to be called up for the sake of locking him down. If he scores a handful of more goals now and before the next qualifier then sure, call him up.