Argentina is in group B where I have already covered Nigeria, Greece and South Korea. Twice World Champions in 1978 and 1986 and 2 time finalist in 1930 and 1990, Argentina is almost always amongst the top contenders to win any World Cup.
The albicelestes have a unique style amongst South American teams known as toque. One could describe toque as the ability to create a unique style by the succession of inventive passes. Then I would say that there is something in the flexibility of Argentinian ankles that gives them a distinct ability in the art of dribbling. The combination of the dribbling and toque skills produces exceptional players like Di Stefano, Kempes, Messi and of course Maradona.
Argentina had a complicated qualifying round finishing only 4th of the South American teams barely avoiding the 5th place which would have meant a complicated playoff game. Maradona tried out a record 70+ players and never seemed to set for a focused way of playing. Paradoxically, Maradona seems to privilege a defensive stance that reminds me of the 1986 World Champion team. The big difference however between that team and the current one was Maradona the player! Messi, who is supposed to be el Pibe’s heir, is totally lost and doesn’t have the equivalents of Iniesta and Xavi when he plays for Barça. I only see Argentina going far if Maradona organises his team so that Messi can benefit from a decent midfield support.
Good luck to the albicelestes and enjoy their national football song “Vamos Vamos Argentina”
Maracanazos like to sing along.