**Official Argentina World Cup Nat. Team Thread. (Future 2010 World Cup Winners)

[ajiiiplatinum]

[table][tr][td]Goalkeepers[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Mariano Andujar[/td][td]Catania (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sergio Romero[/td][td]AZ Alkmaar (NED)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Diego Pozo[/td][td]Colon[/td][/tr][tr][td]Defenders[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Nicolas Burdisso[/td][td]Roma (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Marin Demichelis[/td][td]Bayern Munich (GER)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Manuel Insuarralde[/td][td]Newell’s Old Boys[/td][/tr][tr][td]Gabriel Heinze[/td][td]Marseille (FRA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Nicolas Otamendi[/td][td]Velez Sarsfield[/td][/tr][tr][td]Clemente Rodriguez[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Walter Samuel[/td][td]Inter (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Ariel Garce[/td][td]Colon[/td][/tr][tr][td]Fabricio Coloccini[/td][td]Newcastle United (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Midfielders[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Mario Bolatti[/td][td]Fiorentina (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sebastian Blanco[/td][td]Lanus[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jesus Datolo[/td][td]Olympicacos (GRE)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Angel Di Maria[/td][td]Benfica (POR)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jonas Gutierrez[/td][td]Newcastle United (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Javier Mascherano[/td][td]Liverpool (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Javier Pastore[/td][td]Palermo (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Sebastian Veron[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Mercier[/td][td]Argentinos Juniors[/td][/tr][tr][td]Maxi Rodriguez[/td][td]Liverpool (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jose Ernesto Sosa[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Forwards[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Lionel Messi[/td][td]Barcelona (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Martin Palermo[/td][td]Boca Juniors[/td][/tr][tr][td]Gonzalo Higuain[/td][td]Real Madrid (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sergio Aguero[/td][td]Atletico Madrid (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Ezequiel Lavezzi[/td][td]Napoli (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Carlos Tevez[/td][td]Manchester City (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Diego Milito[/td][td]Inter (ITA)[/td][/tr][/table][table][tr][td]Goalkeepers[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Mariano Andujar[/td][td]Catania (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sergio Romero[/td][td]AZ Alkmaar (NED)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Diego Pozo[/td][td]Colon[/td][/tr][tr][td]Defenders[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Nicolas Burdisso[/td][td]Roma (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Marin Demichelis[/td][td]Bayern Munich (GER)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Manuel Insuarralde[/td][td]Newell’s Old Boys[/td][/tr][tr][td]Gabriel Heinze[/td][td]Marseille (FRA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Nicolas Otamendi[/td][td]Velez Sarsfield[/td][/tr][tr][td]Clemente Rodriguez[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Walter Samuel[/td][td]Inter (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Ariel Garce[/td][td]Colon[/td][/tr][tr][td]Fabricio Coloccini[/td][td]Newcastle United (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Midfielders[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Mario Bolatti[/td][td]Fiorentina (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sebastian Blanco[/td][td]Lanus[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jesus Datolo[/td][td]Olympicacos (GRE)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Angel Di Maria[/td][td]Benfica (POR)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jonas Gutierrez[/td][td]Newcastle United (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Javier Mascherano[/td][td]Liverpool (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Javier Pastore[/td][td]Palermo (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Sebastian Veron[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Mercier[/td][td]Argentinos Juniors[/td][/tr][tr][td]Maxi Rodriguez[/td][td]Liverpool (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jose Ernesto Sosa[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Forwards[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Lionel Messi[/td][td]Barcelona (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Martin Palermo[/td][td]Boca Juniors[/td][/tr][tr][td]Gonzalo Higuain[/td][td]Real Madrid (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sergio Aguero[/td][td]Atletico Madrid (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Ezequiel Lavezzi[/td][td]Napoli (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Carlos Tevez[/td][td]Manchester City (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Diego Milito[/td][td]Inter (ITA)[/td][/tr][/table][table][tr][td]Goalkeepers[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Mariano Andujar[/td][td]Catania (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sergio Romero[/td][td]AZ Alkmaar (NED)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Diego Pozo[/td][td]Colon[/td][/tr][tr][td]Defenders[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Nicolas Burdisso[/td][td]Roma (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Marin Demichelis[/td][td]Bayern Munich (GER)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Manuel Insuarralde[/td][td]Newell’s Old Boys[/td][/tr][tr][td]Gabriel Heinze[/td][td]Marseille (FRA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Nicolas Otamendi[/td][td]Velez Sarsfield[/td][/tr][tr][td]Clemente Rodriguez[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Walter Samuel[/td][td]Inter (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Ariel Garce[/td][td]Colon[/td][/tr][tr][td]Fabricio Coloccini[/td][td]Newcastle United (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Midfielders[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Mario Bolatti[/td][td]Fiorentina (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sebastian Blanco[/td][td]Lanus[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jesus Datolo[/td][td]Olympicacos (GRE)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Angel Di Maria[/td][td]Benfica (POR)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jonas Gutierrez[/td][td]Newcastle United (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Javier Mascherano[/td][td]Liverpool (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Javier Pastore[/td][td]Palermo (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Sebastian Veron[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Juan Mercier[/td][td]Argentinos Juniors[/td][/tr][tr][td]Maxi Rodriguez[/td][td]Liverpool (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Jose Ernesto Sosa[/td][td]Estudiantes[/td][/tr][tr][td]Forwards[/td][td]-[/td][/tr][tr][td]Lionel Messi[/td][td]Barcelona (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Martin Palermo[/td][td]Boca Juniors[/td][/tr][tr][td]Gonzalo Higuain[/td][td]Real Madrid (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Sergio Aguero[/td][td]Atletico Madrid (ESP)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Ezequiel Lavezzi[/td][td]Napoli (ITA)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Carlos Tevez[/td][td]Manchester City (ENG)[/td][/tr][tr][td]Diego Milito[/td][td]Inter (ITA)[/td][/tr][/table]

Goalkeepers: Sergio Romero (AZ Alkmaar), Mariano Andujar (Catania), Diego Pozo (Colon)

Defenders: Nicolas Burdisso (Inter Milan), Martin Demichelis (Bayern Munich), Walter Samuel (Inter Milan), Gabriel Heinze (Olympique Marseille), Nicolas Otamendi (Velez Sarsfield), Fabricio Coloccini (Newcastle), Juan Manuel Insaurralde (Newell’s Old Boys), Clemente Rodriguez (Estudiantes), Ariel Garce (Colon)

Midfielders: Javier Mascherano (Liverpool), Sebastian Blanco (Lanus), Juan Sebastian Veron (Estudiantes), Jesus Datolo (Olympiacos), Jose Sosa (Estudiantes), Maximiliano Rodriguez (Liverpool), Mario Bolatti (Fiorentina), Juan Mercier (Argentinos Juniors), Angel Di Maria (Benfica), Jonas Gutierrez (Newcastle), Javier Pastore (Palermo)

Forwards: Sergio Aguero (Atletico Madrid), Diego Milito (Inter Milan), Martin Palermo (Boca Juniors), Carlos Tevez (Manchester City), Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid), Lionel Messi(Barcelona), Ezequiel Lavezzi (Napoli).

 

[magneto621]

i like argentina but cant see them winning it all..they arnt better than spain brazil or england

 

[bizzygunts]

no Fernando Gago = no World Cup

just kidding, I see them at the QF at most, Messi cannot carry that team by himself

the opposition is going to stiffle him like what they did to Maradona durign 1982

 

[carlos tevez]

I expect to see the exact same starting line-up next month that Maradona used vs. Germany back in March.

---------------Romero-----------
----------Demechillis--Samuel----
Otamendi-------------------Heinze
-------------Mascherano--------
Jonas----------Veron-------Di Maria
---------Messi---Higuain--------------

They obviously have the talent to win it all but it'll come down to Maradona getting his tactics right. Beating Argentina wont be as easy as shutting down Messi. You still have to worry about Veron, Di Maria, Higuain and whoever comes off the bench. Messi may end up as a decoy who opens up space for his team mates.

 

[sirius lee handsome]

This is still preliminary and might change, but I can't understand Heinze over Cambiasso and/or Zanetti. Criminal especially after the way they played against Barcelona recently

Can't believe Palermo got selected, but he still has it in him.

Overall I like the lineup. Forwards are stacked

 

[persiafly]

I had them winning the whole thing a few weeks ago, but at this point I can't imagine Maradona not sabotaging their chances. With even a decent coach I think they'd be favored to reach the semi-final at least, but there's no reason to believe that Maradona can make the right tactical decisions and substitutions to take this team on a deep run. He has no legitimate coaching experience and I doubt his ego will let him defer to those on the squad who do. I wouldn't even put it past him to play Messi in a wrong position to hurt his legacy. *Kanye Shrug*

 

[ezln1]

I'm riding the argentina bandwagon be it glory or a titanic-esque collapse.
Just got too much love for maradona, and his me against the world attitude. And I've been tracking el apache's and la pulga atomica's career for quite some time now.
Hopefully Maradona puts his ego aside for this 1 month and defers a bit to his assistants when it comes to tactics.
La brujita veron is going to be pivotal to their success

 

[keepie uppie]

how good are those midfielders?and it seems to me that Veron is the only natural playmaker in the team...
Zanetti could add experience and assurance at the back and Cambiasso has pretty good vision and range for a defensive midfielder...

 

[erascism]

I see them bowing out to England in the quarters.

It's a quality side but from watching their qualifiers, they just lack cohesiveness. As soon as they run into a stalwart defence (which they will), they'll become flummoxed. Everything is great when they're attacking with success.

Politics are the reason Cambiasso and Zanetti didn't get called up. Once you've got a rift with Maradona, you're gone (Zanetti). And he selected 9? domestic players. That's cool but he kinda wants to toot his horn if and when those players do well. Mascherano is the lone DM so Cambiasso would've been on the bench if he did get called. There's no room for him on this attack heavy side.

 

[wayne looney]

i can understand Zanetti and Cambiasso but where the hell is Lisandro on that list...like he wasnt just named the best player in all of Ligue 1

Palermo isnt half the player he is and Lavezzi is just $!*

 

[taimaishu123]

so ive been lookin for a Argentina jersey. ive been looking for one for about 2 years ever since i passed up on one and a Spain jersey at the adidas outlet store

never tried to buy one online because i know of the fakes, but dont know how to spot them.

a authentic messi if someone can point me in the right direction.

 

[persiafly]

Originally Posted by taimaishu123

so ive been lookin for a Argentina jersey. ive been looking for one for about 2 years ever since i passed up on one and a Spain jersey at the adidas outlet store

never tried to buy one online because i know of the fakes, but dont know how to spot them.

a authentic messi if someone can point me in the right direction.

http://www.soccer.com/IWC...34&Product_Id=534606
If you want to pay less you gotta take your chances with eBay. Not all jerseys on there are fake, and even if they are, some of them are literally identical to the ones retailers sell. 

 

[erascism]

Originally Posted by wayne looney

i can understand Zanetti and Cambiasso but where the hell is Lisandro on that list...like he wasnt just named the best player in all of Ligue 1

Palermo isnt half the player he is and Lavezzi is just $!*

Palermo is a bigger target, strong, and has aerial ability. He has 8 goals in 13 apps for the nat'l team, including that one in injury time in that massive match vs Peru during qualifying, while Lisandro hasn't done anything. He also plays for Boca while Lavezzi plays for Napoli. Politics.

 

[wayne looney]

fair enough but Lisandro has only a handful of caps and most of those have been late on substitutions..just based off current form hes been tearing up the French Ligue (POY as mentioned) all year as well as putting work in the CL..with Aguero, Tevez, Higuain, Messi, Milito i dont know how much time he'd have seen anyway...just strange that his form this season wouldn't have at least warranted a spot in the initial 30

 

[carlos tevez]

The fact of the matter is a guy like Lisandro likely would not even have gotten 1 single minute of significant playing time for Argentina. The same goes with Palermo (he'll only play if Argentina are up big or if they win their first 2 group stage matches). Hell, the same may apply with Aguero (although Maradona loves him and will likely find some playing time for him).

Right now I think their striker depth chart will look like this:

1. Messi
2. Higuain
3. Tevez
4. Milito
5. Aguero
6. Palermo

I dont think their strikers are the issue here. I dont believe any country in the world have better strikers than Argentina at the moment. You have a guy like Barrios who scored 20-goals in Germany this season but applied for a Paraguayan passport because he knew he'd likely never get a chance to play for his native country.

The three main issues for me are:
-Veron...forget Messi...Veron will be Argentina's #10 in this tournament and they'll need him to distribute the ball effectively.
-Lack of width from the LB and RB positions. You may not see too many overlapping runs from Heinze and Otamendi (two natural CBs).
-Maradona's coaching decisions when things begin to get difficult. What does he do when Argentina are up by 1-goal in the 2nd half? What does he do when the match is 0-0 and their attack needs a spark? What does he do when Argentina concede first? He has made adjustments over his last 4-5 matches (this isnt an all-out-attacking-team anymore) however he obviously does not have the pedigree as other world class managers.

 

[persiafly]

Originally Posted by Carlos Tevez

-Maradona's coaching decisions when things begin to get difficult. What does he do when Argentina are up by 1-goal in the 2nd half? What does he do when the match is 0-0 and their attack needs a spark? What does he do when Argentina concede first? He has made adjustments over his last 4-5 matches (this isnt an all-out-attacking-team anymore) however he obviously does not have the pedigree as other world class managers.

Nail on the head. I don't think you can understate how crucial this may be.
And their depth at striker is just 

What do you think about Higuain being ahead of Tevez on the chart? Isn't there room for argument the other way after what Tevez did for Man City this year? And he seems more likely to step up in big moments IMO. 

 

[suckafree85]

I want Argentina to win.. I always root for them every world cup. Hopefully they make it happen this year.

 

[ezln1]

a long overdue bump
Cannot wait for the game tomorrow.

Latest news is that Burdisso will start for Samuel. It gives them a bit more speed in their defensive line against Dos Santos and Chicharrito (whenever he comes in...heard he might start)

Also, looks like Maradona is conceding for the time being his questionable strategy of Jonas, and going with Otamendi, and Maxi instead of Veron. You could tell Veron was not match fit in the last game.

 

[carlos tevez]

Anyone have links to articles on Maradona's selections against Mexico? I've been reading English sources over the past few minutes and they seem to be speculating more than anything.

I really hope EZLN1 is right and that Gutierrez and Veron are benched.

It sucks that Samuel is still hurt but Burdisso is a good defender. Now if only Argentina can beat Mexico, Samuel can recover and Burdisso replaces Demichillis in the starting XI.

 

[Trey Bantz]

Tevez, if you can read in spanish www.ole.com.ar, which is Argentina's main sports newspaper confirms what EZLN1 has posted, that Maradona will put Maxi and Otamendi in for Veron and Jonas and they also speculate that Diego will put Burdisso in for Samuel who apparently isn't 100% yet.

 

[carlos tevez]

Originally Posted by trey ohh five

Tevez, if you can read in spanish www.ole.com.ar, which is Argentina's main sports newspaper confirms what EZLN1 has posted, that Maradona will put Maxi and Otamendi in for Veron and Jonas and they also speculate that Diego will put Burdisso in for Samuel who apparently isn't 100% yet.

Great news

Thanks for confirming it. They're saying the same thing on ESPN.

Otamendi is 1000000x better defensively than Gutierrez. Burdisso for the injured Samuel isn't a surprise. Veron has not looked good at all in his two appearances and Maradona deserves props if he decides to drop the under-performing central midfielder.

Going with a midfield of Di Maria, Mascherano and Maxi will still put a TON of pressure on Mascherano but it seems like Maradona is confident in his 5 attackers and 5 defenders approach.

Regardless of what happens tomorrow, taking out Gutierrez and Veron from the starting XI is the right decision.

 

[i3]

Come on Argentina!!!

I remember the game last WC, MAXIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

 

[xtapolapacetl]

Originally Posted by magneto621

i like argentina but cant see them winning it all..they arnt better than spain brazil or england

Say what??

Argentina are strong contenders, but if they don't end up winning the World Cup, I have a strong feeling that the one who will be responsible is Demichelis.

 

[i3]

Mexico.. done and dusted. Not a convincing performance, but i'll take it.

Germany up next ala WC '06. Im scared, Germany were on point against England... im very scared.

 

[ezln1]

Ok, time to bump this once again. A lot of $+%! talking between both sides, but to tomorrow is time to stop talking and start playing.

From what I've read, it looks to be the same squad that went against Mexico.
Only thing in doubt is whether Samuel will start in place of Burdisso.
Let's hope el flaco de Di Maria has a break out game, and that Messi gets on the scoresheet. More than that, LET'S +*%%#$! WIN!

HASTA LA VICTORIA