Copa America 2015: Argentina vs Uruguay Group B

Moishe · Jun 17, 2015

Scrappy win, even with the ref being absolutely awful. Garay and Otamendi for sure can grow into a very strong duo in the back. Zabaleta was definitely an improvement over Roncaglia but that really isn't saying much. Rojo as a center back is good but out wide just doesn't work. What we really need is another Juan Pablo Sorin type player to help link up the defense with the attack. Currently it's not happening and while Mascherano is defending like a machine his contributions going forward are nowhere near as good as they were in the WC. Pastore was very good in my opinion Biglia as well. Di Maria was pretty awful in my opinion. I loved Kun's work rate and the goal was very well executed. Messi was also very good and considering how much went through him man of the match was justified.

For the subs, not sold on the timing of when Banega came in, his passing seemed soft and sloppy. Pereyra came on too late and was a wasted sub. Tevez in very short minutes almost set one up for Messi, he also looked for Messi with nearly all his touches. I'd like to see how Messi and Tevez can link up with more minutes on the field together. I'd keep Kun as long as he's fit and working how he is. Lavezzi for Di Maria is the other change I'd make. Love Di Maria but he just hasn't impressed consistently enough since returning from his WC injury.

Christina99 · Jun 17, 2015

I ve heard a lot of people say "i love di maria but..." he must be the most likable player on the team! Everyone likes di maria, theres just something about this guy...

Im like that too, always trying to excuse him cause he is so damn likable. He is my favourite in the NT (eventhough messi is obviously better) cause he is so damn likable, besides his quality.

It seems that people is much more harsh on other players (specially messi, that is supposed to score 5 goals per game to satisfy people -imo messi is ALWAYS great for the NT and very unfairly treated by fans and media-) and is willing to let go whatever errors el fideo has

Same with kun: look how we overly critisize him (im guilty of this too) after last WC, and now we are eating our words

Anyways, di maria is the most likable player of this NT, no doubt about that

BocaFan · Jun 17, 2015

SupaMario said: ↑

How was Messi MOTM? .
Click to expand...

He spearheaded almost all of Argentina's dangerous attacks. In both matches so far.

Jaweirdo · Jun 17, 2015

Am I the only one who thinks that Argentina is playing better at the Copa so far compared to the WC? Especially on the offensive end of things. The team looks far more comfortable going forward and less reliant on Messi. Although there are still instances where a player looks to pass to Messi instead of another player in a more advantageous area. Pastore and Banega have both been top form. There are long periods of time when Argentina are playing completely in another teams half, it has happened both in the Paraguay and Urugay game so far. Di Maria has not been that great at all but he has shown good hustle surprisingly and hopefully his attacking gets better. Kun also makes some questionable decisions but has 2 goals so far so its hard to complain. Mascherano and Otamendi had an outstanding game IMO.

Way more fluidity than the WC

locoxriver · Jun 17, 2015

Jaweirdo said: ↑

Am I the only one who thinks that Argentina is playing better at the Copa so far compared to the WC? Especially on the offensive end of things. The team looks far more comfortable going forward and less reliant on Messi.

Way more fluidity than the WC
Click to expand...

I think a more just comparison would be Sabella's campaign in the 2014 WC Qualifiers, rather than the WC itself, given that they are the same opponents as the ones we're facing in the Copa America.

In that case, I wouldn't say Argentina is playing better offensively. With a few exceptions, in the majority of the WCQ games Argentina showed attacking prowess, with Messi and Higuain dominating the CONMEBOL goalscoring charts til the final games (19 goals scored between the two). If you want even more direct comparisons, we beat Paraguay and Uruguay 5-2 and 3-0 respectively in the qualifiers, compared to the 2-2 draw and a minimal 1-0 win we achieved in this Copa. Then there were other thrashings, such as a 4-1 win vs. Chile, a 4-0 vs. Ecuador, and a few others.

I do agree with you that this team does indeed look more fluid and offensive than the one we saw in Brazil, but they are different tournaments (teams tend to risk less during a WC), different opponents (we always have more room to play when facing South American opponents, hence my WCQ comparison), and frankly different scenarios (for one, Aguero is fit -contrary to 12 months ago-, which forced Sabella to modify the formation and tactics he had used throughout the qualifiers)

SupaMario · Jun 18, 2015

Sabella didn't find a rhythm till the game in Colombia, where he finally used the Fantastic 4 in the 2nd half and we came away with a 2-1 victory. If you look at Sabella early in the qualifiers, outside of the game against Chile, we drew to Bolivia at home and lost to Venezuela. We had games we even struggled, the game vs Uruguay, it wasn't till late in the 2nd half when it was a scrappy goal that got us the lead and the door finally opened up and we killed the game off.

A coach needs time to find the right formula for his plan to work. We are playing somewhat of a more traditional game. I don't trust Tata at all, those subs in the first game were beyond bad. I think he tried it out on FIFA 2015 and believed it could work.I can only hope he can find a proper balance that works for this team.

The next game, if we win, and win big, I don't think it proves anything. It will be in the KO stages, and I know teams will sit back and play on the counter, and now, after 90minutes, there are PK's. They will roll the dice with that. We need to score, and score early. We can't suffer like this, the team just isn't very good when the game prolongs with no goals.

Aguero is on form for us right now, and I can only hope he continues his scoring. He has said that he owes the country for the poor WC showing he had. I am glad he is taking that on. I think he is good enough to lead us.

Rattlehead · Jun 18, 2015

The no ET rules is stupid. In 2004 there's no ET and then there's again in 2007 & 2011 and now they change it again. CONMEBOL is controlling this turnament like its FIFA game with its setting/options.

Rattlehead · Jun 18, 2015

Tata had about 8 friendlies before entering this tournament. Not the case for Sabella when entering WC qualifier.

Dr. Know · Jun 20, 2015

The defense looked good in this game. Still can't believed they lost a 2 goal lead in the first one.

The attack is still not clicking well. Id'd move DiMaria to midfield and start Higuain. DiMaria does a good job of tracking back.

Pastore had some good moves but overall he was average imo and he was horrible in the first game.