World Cup 2014: Do Argentina Have What It Takes To Win The Trophy In Brazil

The Argentina national team is known for its quality and depth in attack and less than excellent defence. Do they have what it takes to go all the way in the World Cup?

Argentina is in the eyes of many one of the favorites to lift the world cup trophy in July. Arguably theyai??i??re one of the Top 4 main candidates along defending champions Spain, hosts Brazil and Germany, but do they have what it takes to go all the way?

Angel Di Maria (left), Sergio Aguero (centre), Lionel Messi (right - Argentina national football team — Di Maria, Aguero and Messi (left to right) are a deadly combo up front

The talent is definitely there; few teams if any can form a squad with the quality and depth Argentina has. The likes of Messi, Aguero, Di MarAi??a, HiguaAi??n, Zabaleta, Mascherano, Palacio, Lavezzi, etc certainly inspire respect and fear in their rivals.

The problem is though that most of those players are offensive-minded and occupy the same positions in the pitch, and as great as theyai??i??ve been during the qualifying campaign and the latest friendlies, the defense hasnai??i??t been anywhere near showing that same level. Only the aforementioned Zabaleta seems to be a world class defender among the ones that have been starting lately for Argentina. The center back partnership formed by Federico Fernandez and Ezequiel Garay has never shown a really convincing level and the weakest points in the team are the left back and the goalkeeper.

Marcos Rojo has been Argentinaai??i??s worst player during most of the qualifiers and his level raised a lot of questions, but Sabella keeps insisting with him and will most likely start in Brazil. Sergio Romeroai??i??s case is even more worrying. He hasnai??i??t been playing regular football since last May. He left Sampdoria and joined Monaco hoping thatai??i??d change, but it hasnai??i??t been the case so far and will request a loan during the winter transfer to see if he can finally get some playing time elsewhere. Lack of football has certainly affected his performances and most of the supporters question Sabellaai??i??s decision to keep him as the starting goalkeeper and not giving other goalkeepers a chance, especially Agustin Orion and Wilfredo Caballero, whose recent performances were hugely praised.

Wilfredo Caballero (Willy Caballero) - Malaga CF and Argentina goalkeeper | — Caballero’s performances at Malaga merit inclusion

Itai??i??s understandable that the coach of a team shows confidence to certain players even when theyai??i??re not at a great level, but is it justified to leave out better players (or at least players that are showing a much higher level right now) for it? Caballero and Orion have been doing enough merits to at least earn a place in the squad, but most likely they wonai??i??t make it to the final list or only one of them will do and as the 3rd goalkeeper (the second one will be Mariano Andujar).

Add to that, while the Fernandez-Garay partnership hasnai??i??t shown the level a team aspiring to win the World Cup would expect, some players that may fill those positions have been showing a great level in their respective teams lately, particularly Gonzalo Rodriguez (Fiorentina) and to a lesser extent Federico Fazio (Sevilla). Both have been playing consistently and at a high level during this season and have done enough merits to be in Sabellaai??i??s consideration.

While there arenai??i??t many alternatives in the left back position, at this point itai??i??s clear enough that Rojo doesnai??i??t have the level or experience required to play for the national team. Clemente Rodriguez and Cristian Ansaldi have both being called up by Sabella in the last twelve months and deserve to start ahead the Sporting Lisbon fullback.

Alejandro Sabella - Argentina national football team manager | — Sabella has found a way to get the best out of Messi

In the midfield and upfront, things are much clearer. The combination of Javier Mascherano and Fernando Gago works wonders – it is solid and consistent; while alternatives like Lucas Biglia and Ever Banega have also responded when they were needed. Ahead of them, Angel Di MarAi??a will be the link between them and the forward players. The Real Madrid winger is in great form and has been decisive the whole qualifying campaign being the player that assisted more goals in the squad (5).

The line of attack is undoubtedly the teamai??i??s greatest strength: Messi, Aguero and HiguaAi??n. Between them they scored 24 goals in the qualifiers and are one of the most (if not the most) prolific attacks in the world at the moment. Not only that, the alternatives are almost as good as them. Rodrigo Palacio and Ezequiel Lavezzi had an impressive qualifying campaign as well and would easily start in almost every other national team in the world. The controversial absentee (here) is undoubtedly that of Carlos Tevez – he was never in Sabellaai??i??s consideration and has not played in the national side since 2011. Tevez has since returned to top form for Juventus in Serie A this season, but as they say ai???If it ain’t broke don’t fix itai??? and the current trio has proved to understand each other perfectly inside the pitch, so itai??i??s highly unlikely the Juventus striker will make the list.

All in all, Argentina has definitely the tools to go far in the 2014 FIFA World Cup and even win it. With Lionel Messi pulling the strings and a solid squad, overall, it will be up to manager Alejandro Sabella to fix the weak spots if the team in the remaining six months and improve it as much as possible. Playing close to home will be a huge boost in Argentinaai??i??s World Cup chances as well. Every time the FIFA World Cup has taken place played in South America, the trophy stayed there – in fact, only once has a European country managed to become world champions outside the old continent (i.e. Spain in 2010). The future certainly look bright for La Albiceleste.

Written by Ramees Mohammed

World Cup 2014: Do Argentina Have What It Takes To Win The Trophy In Brazil

Recommended

How Manchester United could line up under Ruben Amorim

Five players Ruben Amorim should look to sign for Manchester United

Real Madrid and a defence that needs an immediate overhaul

Three potential January Real Madrid targets to cover for Eder Militao

Welcome Back!

Retrieve your password