Argentina Team Profile – 2010 FIFA World Cup
Argentina – The country, the football
The South American giant country ranks 33rd in the world when it comes to reckoning the population, as its inhabitants are believed to surpass the number of 40,000,000. In Argentina, freedom of religious faith is a characteristic granted by their Constitution. However, Roman Catholicism continues to be the major religion, being practiced by over 70% of Argentina’s residents.
Like almost everywhere on the planet, football appears to be Argentina’s favorite sport, and their love for the game might partly come from the fact that their national football team – known as the Albicelestes (White and Sky blue), or La Selección (The Selection) – is one of the most successful teams in the world.
Over the years, the Albicelestes have been bettering their name in football, with 25 major international titles won and now resting in their cabinet. Nevertheless, the two best moments in their history were certainly in 1978 and in 1986, when they brought home their only two FIFA World Cup trophies.
Now, several years later, Argentine football fans can take a deep breath: their players have already qualified for the South African 2010 FIFA World Cup, but what a dramatic qualification it was! In any case, they totally know that what is ahead of them is much more important than what they have experienced previously.
Winning the 2010 FIFA World Cup trophy in South Africa is a dream which must come true for the legendary Diego Maradona and his Albicelestes.
Argentina – The road to the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals
The South American qualifiers for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa went on through round-by-round fixtures, consisting of 10 teams battling it out for tickets to the finals. The top 4 teams were promised an automatic place in the tournament’s group stages, whereas the 5th placed team was destined to face the 4th placed team from the CONCACAF qualification zone in a two-legged play-off.
Obviously Argentina knew that this was not a joke, and that therefore, performing at their best throughout the campaign was needed for their own sake. Beneficially, the Albicelestes started their campaign in the World Cup qualifiers on a good note, defeating Chile 2-0 in Buenos Aires, thanks to a double from Riquelme.
Argentina’s wonder kid Lionel Messi then got his first goal of the qualification in his country’s next 2-0 victory; this time, it came against Venezuela, away from home. The South American giants were however shocked by Colombia, who beat them 2-1 in the 4th Round, despite having won 3-0 against Bolivia earlier on in the 3rd Round.
Soon after, there were fears in the hearts of Argentine supporters, giving that their side had resumed their run in the qualifiers with 4 more winless games. In those games, Argentina were incapable of imposing themselves over Ecuador, Brazil, Paraguay, and Peru.
Lionel Messi and Aguero finally came to the rescue of the Albicelestes in the 9th Round, powering Argentina to a 2-1 home victory against Uruguay, before Chile humbled them 1-0 at the Estadio Nacional, in Santiago. Following Argentina’s inconsistent campaign in the South American qualifiers ahead of the World Cup, there were speculations whether the Albicelestes would really make it the tournament’s finals in South Africa.
In November 2008, legend and former Argentina player Diego Maradona was named as Argentina's new coach, replacing Alfio Basile in post. In truth, his introduction as a manager was not only the start of a new life for him, but also the beginning of an unforgettable story for the team.
In other words, Diego Maradona's appointement as the manager of Argentina's national team of football marked a new era in the country's history of soccer.
The Albicelestes had a wonderful result under Diego Armando Maradona in the coach's first qualifier in charge. They crashed Venezuela 4-0 with 3 goals coming from Tévez, Rodríguez and Agüero, after Lionel Messi had scored his side’s opener in his number 10 jersey which had been assigned to him for the first time ever in his career.
The Argentines were looking forward to obtaining more great results in their upcoming matches; however, they were astonishingly trounced 6-1 by Bolivia away from home in Round 12.
Three more losses in their next 4 games highly jeopardized the Albicelestes' chances of participating in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Yet, dramatic victories in their last 2 qualifying games against Peru and Uruguay saw them secure the fourth and last automatic place (from the CONMEBOL zone) in the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals with 28 points.
Argentina – 2010 FIFA World Cup group stage
Despite their poor form during the South American World Cup qualifiers, Argentina still managed to land in Pot 1 ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup’s final draw.
On December 4th in Cape Town, the World Cup group stage fixtures were revealed. Argentina were placed in Group B as top seeds, followed by Nigeria, Korea Republic, and Greece.
Match-day 1: Argentina vs Nigeria
Argentina will first face African danger-makers Nigeria at the Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg; they'll be praying to overcome the Nigerians' challenge so as to get a fine start to their 2010 FIFA World Cup finals campaign. This match will kick-off on June 12th, at 16:00 South African local time.
Undeniably, this will be a very hard opening game for the Albicelestes, as the Nigerians seem to have no mentality problems when it comes to meeting highly-ranked national football teams.
Coach Diego Maradona, as well as his main ace Lionel Messi along with other players, will all want to get the best out of this encounter in order to reduce the pressure inflicted by their supporters. Also, they'd like to benefit from 3 first points which would eventually ease their way through the knockout phase.
Match-day 2: Argentina vs Korea Republic
Argentina will then play against Korea Republic at the Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg, on June 17th, at 13:30 local time. Korea Republic are partly regarded as their group’s underdogs, and thus, this fact should serve as an opportunity for the Argentines to improve their probabilities of featuring in the 2010 FIFA World Cup’s last 16 stage.
Match-day 3: Greece vs Argentina
The last fixture of the Albicelestes in Group B will be against UEFA Euro 2004 champions Greece. This game is scheduled to begin at 20:30 local time, on June 22nd 2010.
Argentina will go into that game playing as the away side at the Peter Mokaba Stadium. There are possibilities that, by then, Group B’s top seeds will have to deal with fatigue, pressure, as well as the organization between the squad - tactically as well as techically.
The Argentines are currently renowned for their huge tactical misunderstanding on the field, on top of their physically weak bodies, and ineffectual mentality. Perchance, these are few things that the Greeks would love to take advantage of, when both sides face each other in South Africa.
Nevertheless, such regrettable imperfections are definitely some that Coach Diego Maradona would wish to have in his control, so as to turn them into powerful qualities prior to his clash against the Hellenic side.
Argentina – Quick Analysis: Expectations from the country and its top stars
Argentina would normally have no excuse if ever they were to have a bad time in the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals, as their team presents a number of advantages in terms of players and their skills.
Lionel Messi:
Argentina and Barcelona star Lionel Messi is currently regarded as one of the world’s best players ever to exist.
The reigning FIFA Player of the Year’s wonderful skills on the ball have enabled him to lead his club to glory, and his country to success in 2005 and 2008, when Argentina won the FIFA U-20 World Cup and the Summer Olympics respectively.
However, in spite of all these great deeds, Lionel Messi has never been able to really prove himself in his country’s senior national football team. During the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, he received several critics from Argentina football lovers and the media, all accusing him of not being devoted to the Albicelestes.
In fact, Messi wasn’t capable of living up to expectations mid-way through the qualifiers. But now that Argentina have their place in the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals, it will be his chance to do what he has never done before for his national team.
Lionel Messi is then expected to give his fans the performance which will make him the tournament’s “Special Player”, as well as his country’s “Dream Maker”.
Sergio Agüero:
The Atletico Madrid forward’s load in Argentina’s football team isn’t as huge as Lionel Messi’s. Still, Aguero has a lot to prove.
The striker’s performance during the South American World Cup qualifiers was far from being impressive. Bearing in mind that his role is to give points to the Albicelestes by placing the ball at the back of the net, there is no doubt that he will have to concentrate a lot, should he excel in the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals.
Carlos Tevez:
The Manchester City striker hasn’t had too much playing time for Argentina; yet, his inclusion in the Albicelestes squad ahead of the South African World Cup finals could be highly influential.
Carlos Tevez is famous for his aggressiveness on the field, being compared to the “Tasmania Devil”; but then, he will surely have to be in a devastating form so as to contribute to his side’s success in the group stage.
Javier Mascherano:
The Liverpool defensive midfielder and Argentina captain is also one of the team’s strong hold. Nevertheless, his dreadful tackles haven’t been permitting him to truly be the player people would love to see.
Profiting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa will perhaps be a good solution to change his image towards the public, and also strengthen his captaincy in the team.
Mascherano replaced Juan Roman Riquelme (who retired in 2008 due to disagreement against Maradona) as the Albicelestes' team leader. How well can he perform and influence the Argentine squad?
Diego Maradona:
The notorious Argentina coach is among the most scrutinized figures in football nowadays. His attitude and decisions have let many Argentine football lovers hate him. While Argentina were still fighting for their tickets to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Diego Maradona was loaded with critics.
The manager is said to have no control over his team, despite globally being regarded as a “god” in the game.
Advisably, Diego Maradona will need to convince his foes back home during the finals in South Africa; otherwise, his position as the man in charge of the Albicelestes could be given to someone else.
Argentina – Current 2010 FIFA World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
Diego Pozo; Mariano Andujar; Sergio Romero
Defenders:
Ariel Garce; Clemente Rodriguez; Nicolas Burdisso; Gabriel Heinze; Walter Samuel; Martin Demichelis; Nicolas Otamendi
Midfielders:
Mario Bolatti; Javier Pastore; Angel Di Maria; Juan Sebastian Veron; Javier Mascherano ; Maximiliano Rodriguez; Jonas Gutierrez
Forwards:
Carlos Tevez; Diego Milito; Sergio Aguero; Martin Palermo; Gonzalo Higuain; Lionel Messi
Argentina – Relevant Quote
Carlos Bilardo, General Manager of Argentina's national football team: “Our group is difficult, but we can still make it.”
The Argentina general manager and former Albicelestes player thinks that Group B, in which his country was placed, presents treacherous opponents; but he remains hopeful optimistic about Argentina’s chances to entering the tournament’s last 16. In his quote regarding this issue Carlos Bilardo stated:
“My first thoughts are that this is a good group, because we were hoping not to travel too much. For that, things are just perfect. But it is not an easy group at all – on the contrary I think it is very difficult.
“In 1990, everybody thought that Cameroon was easy, and we ended up losing the first match. The South Koreans are strong, but we know them very well. Nigeria are a difficult side too, and Greece have shown in recent years that they can fight against big teams.
“If it wasn't Greece, it could have been Portugal or France, so we don’t really have reasons to complain. But for sure, we are confident; (Diego) Maradona and I have been to the World Cup finals on two occasions, and this is not bad, and I expect this to continue next year. In 1986, Maradona was the key to our victory and now, we have [Lionel] Messi; he is our decisive player. I haven't spoken to Diego yet, but I am sure that he is self-assured.”
Argentina – World Cup records
So, Argentina is often observed as one of the most likely teams to reach a FIFA World Cup final, but in reality, how great have they been in their history of the game? Below is the record of the Albicelestes in the tournament:
2010: Qualified as participants
2006, 1998, 1966: Quarterfinals
2002, 1962, 1958, 1934: Round 1
1994: Round of 16
1990, 1930: Second Place
1986, 1978: Champions
1982, 1974: Round 2
Argentina – 2010 FIFA World Cup Coverage
Don’t hesitate to visit LiveSoccerTV.com back for the latest information around Argentina throughout the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa, as the site brings you all the news including fixtures, results, profiles, previews, and videos on the Albicelestes.
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