2026 FIFA World Cup: FINAL - Argentina vs. Spain

Sabella with a Higuain who could score would have won the world cup

 

It's a weird thing, but we've done better at world cups when we have had less talented squads. Perhaps less ego issues, more team unity than when it is packed with stars.

 

The thing is, Higuain simply aint scoring as we saw in 2 CA finals

Higuain played 4 tournament finals at club level (3 Coppa Italia and 1 Copa del rey), no goal.

 

No that was after winning 1-0 World Cup qualifying victory at the Maracana in 2023. he needed to "think a lot about what to do" that it was "complicated to continue" and keep winning. He said something like national team needed a coach with total energy.

Bro was smart enough to know. You can see the cracks even in the copa. We simply stuck too much to the same core. Like that Mexico game from 7 years ago that was posted with pretty much same core

 

I cant help but feel that Argentina and Messi were punished for the Malvinas protest after the England game. I see no other reason for Rodri (LOL) winning best player such a joke

We need to start some conspiracies about that ref too. He was involved in a corruption scandal as well

 

No, no, no stop with the conspiracy theories, I beg you, there enough nutters out there we don't need to add to it. Spain deserved to win and that's the end of it.

 

Every move we did was part of an elaborate conspiracy lmao

 

This wasnt a red.



Yet, all these mindless bots would claimed god rigged the planet for Argentina cause the sky is blue and white.

 

The CA final win against Brazil at their home turf simply destroyed the mental block. Before that we'd see Riquelme dominating the tournament and then he'd shoot like Molina once we get into the final (see CA 2007 and Conf 2005).

 

if we put in low iq, uneducated players like prestianni in the next world cup and have less skillful, smart and talented playes like paz or julian, consider the next one gone too

it's time to start picking players with better thinking ability and calmness but with fire

Calmness is not being like parades and clipping everyone or pushing during a game

I watch the NHL all my life, i know what a real tough in sports means, these antics in argentina need to stop COMPLETELY it's ruining our ability to focus and win games

It's not helping at all, if the players don't realize that they're stupid af
it's no huevos, you have to be intelligent and know that the ref was european and it's a world cup final
you can't go in like a conmebol final and foul like they did to neymar, you have to play more pragmatic in your game. This is basically standard fifa world cup stuff, but these morons went into the final like it was a classico in argentina

It's annoying to know they did that

 

I wish our players had more discipline, they lose the plot far to readily in games, honestly if Cuti could control himself he woud be playing for Real Madrid or Barca instead of getting sent off every 3 games for Spurs. There's far to many like that, Paredes, Otamendi. Enzo is probably the worst of the lot, just calm yourself down lads

 

Harry Kane is like that for England, I mean he played in 2 Euro finals, 2 world cup semi finals, all together 4 semi finals and he has 2 penalty goals against Denmark and Netherlands to show for it, and that after a dive by Sterling and a laughable pen awarded against the Dutch. He was also invisible in the champions league final against Liverpool.

 

That's a very defeatist attitude. Julian is world class and Nico Paz will be if he keeps developing as he has done.

What is troubling is what is emerging now at what happened behind the scenes.

Apparently Scaloni had another falling out with Tapia in April. Not just about the friendlies but also with the failure of the AFA to make sure certain players like Paz and Julian were not played while with injuries. Apparently Scaloni fell out with Cholo over this as well.

So players did come into the selection who were not as we thought fully fit meaning they couldn't train properly and were not match fit or sharp and it's a testament to their willpower and grit they still got over the line. That means several players played each match on painkillers and explains why we didn't along with the far longer season see players running around as they did in 22.

In that case Scaloni also needs to look at himself as to why he didn't pick other players and use players like Barco then. Why he continued with Romero and Licha for every game until they broke down.

And it appears while he originally planned to start with Simeone and Paredes he changed his mind last minute from training to choose Nico G and RDP.

 

While I agree with your point, here's what Argentina players used to be...





This is why the confrontative nature of players like Paredes, Cuti, Licha, Enzo & RDP never surprise me.

 

Maybe I'm being too hyperbolic but I hope you understand my desire to win
I actually think the next cycle we have a better chance of winning than we did with this cycle

The talent, the youth is all there - We will surprised everyone again, but it's not really a surprise

 

Mate if you could find the post even I thought in April that 2030 will be an even better opportunity with the core we have fully matured maybe with Enzo as captain and the incredible depth coming through particularly in defence and midfield (hence why we should nab Tresoldi NOW to add to the depth, Castro is yet to show his real dominance and Panichelli tested in a top league and Freitas reminds me of Julian in his abilties to drop deep play across the front anywhere but not an out and out nine).

Even so to have come so close with such hindrances is a testament to this team apart from a few exceptions. I know Molina has come in for huge criticism. Rightly so.

But even he wasn't fully fit or match ready. Imagine if we had had another winter WC we would most probably have won in December last year.

Muneco is undecided on taking the job if offered. I would love to see him take over. Flexible tactician and he obviously knows the River core Enzo, Julian and Ezequiel and some of the possibles like Beltran, Rivero. If he doesn't want to well bring in Placente and keep Aimar, Samuel and Ayala and of course Manna too.

 

You do wonder what goes on behind the scenes at these associations. I mean it could all just be rumours and nonsense, but you read about Portugal FA only choosing managers who will conitnue to pick Ronaldo, or Anceloti being told he had to pick Neymar for the squad. What the truth of it is who knows, makes for good click bait I guess and gives us something to talk about.

 

I actually think we have the best midfield in the world if we pick all the right players but to be completely dominated like that there's nothing I can say to back it up (plus the injury reports you bring up)

Even if they win the finaliisma who cares, it's like winning nations league

We still do, but how can I gloat about that opinion if the players and the coach don't show it

 

You win, you lose in football. That's truth but still, i don't think i will ever swallow this defeat.

90 MINUTES WITHOUT EVEN A SINGLE SHOT??? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Why Paredes, why did you have to push Olmo out of nowhere? Enzo, what were you thinking?

 

Wasn't it 120 mins without a shot on target? Embarassing.

 

The defeats in the finals, in the world cup, never leave you do they. Just linger in the memory forever, no matter how many times you tell yourself to move on you keep going back to them and thinking "what if this had happened instead of that, what if he had been fit, or he had played instead of him". Arghhhhhh.

 

90 minutes without even taking a single shot. 90 MINUTES.

Really not even a second divison team would play that bad.

Piss me off that only after conceded, the team tried to attack and actually could create chances.

So what the hell did they do before that?

 

In 2014 at least Argentina played football, had multi chances but unfortunately couldn't convert.

France could be proud of 2022 Final because it is a masterpiece.

But can you say something good from 2026 final? Absolute nothing.

 

Effing hell, that is just dreadful. We went from playing in the greatest world cup final of all time to playing one one of the worst. At least we have both ends covered

 

Yes, we fell short of back-to-back World Cup wins , but we didn't collapse the way the 2014 hosts did, and we didn't fail the way your idol did, contributing absolutely nothing across all his World Cups [yes yours, the one lurking here].

We'll get through this. We'll rise together. Vamos.