- 2 days ago
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00On back-to-back World Cup from a very similar group we just saw Leonel Scaloni and Leonel Scaloni
00:04He decided to make this group about experience
00:09Didn't quite renew the group all that much
00:12And it feels like it's ride-or-die with the guys that I know have gone through this and are
00:18gonna be able to handle the moment
00:20Is that gonna be enough? That's another big question. Yeah, very much themes of
00:26familiarity and continuity
00:30Leonel Scaloni over two-thirds of the squad that went to Qatar still very much involved as Argentina
00:37To create some havoc
00:39And down on the ground is Giuliani Simeone and almost fell back to him and then the shots all along
00:44the ground
00:44An instinctive left-footed effort from Valentin Barco and Argentina to light the crowd here at Auburn by taking an
00:53early lead
01:06And I spoke earlier about Valentin Barco that he had a good match against Honduras and it's one of those
01:11players that is making a case for
01:13Leonel Scaloni this is Joe's poor defender from Iceland opportunity to clear it clear it clear it somebody clear clear
01:19it get rid of it
01:20clear it no all right fine then give an opportunity to Valentin Barco on top of the 18-yard box
01:26and give him credit
01:27It stays with it
01:29Snapshot through a whole lot of bodies the goalkeeper from Ireland cease and lay by the time he reacts is
01:34too late full stretch
01:35Can't quite get there one nothing good finish from Valentin Barco and again poor defending from Iceland
01:42Unable to clear their lines one nothing Argentina
01:47Well as you pointed out at a several chances to deal with it for the Icelandic defense take nothing away
01:53from Barco that was
01:55Anything but easy wasn't it with the left foot didn't have much target to aim at but
02:00Down the bottom corner unerringly just his second
02:04international goal
02:06There's only his fourth appearance for his country
02:13And at the age of 21 he is kind of the exception to the rule we're talking about the rejuvenation
02:19of this Argentina squad in him in Scaloni
02:23Hasn't done that much of it, but Barco
02:26And it's made his presence felt Oscar soon trying to do the same at the other ranch for Iceland to
02:31have that chance
02:34Elletson before Barco pounced
02:41And it's good medicine
02:47It's interesting to ask a question from Argentina from Leonel Esteloni as he looks at this group of players that
02:53are currently on the field
02:54Which one of these players could be useful to him during the World Cup and think back to four years
03:00ago?
03:00And how players like Alexis McAllister were not considered to be starters Enzo Fernandez not considered to be a starter
03:07And then as they lost the game against Saudi Arabia, and they had to make some changes
03:11These guys came on and made a difference which one of the players that we're now seeing is potentially one
03:18of those guys that can make a difference
03:20coming off the bench or if indeed
03:21Escaloni needs to make changes from game to game one of those players right now so far it's been Valentin
03:28Barco
03:32Yeah, certainly there were players that started the last World Cup on the bench and
03:37Ended up in the starting site
03:39Playing a huge part in proceedings
03:42Playing a huge part in proceedings
03:43Think of Enzo Fernandez of course he's
03:45On the bench tonight
03:54Giving up giving away and a chance for Lopez to lead the charge
04:02Coming inside awkward for the keeper got enough on it to steer it to safety for now
04:08And then a miss it shot on the follow-up from Simeone
04:12And then Iceland survive barely
04:16And maybe I'm gonna give an excuse to Nico Paz
04:20It's poor distribution play from Iceland and a turnover
04:25That indeed the field conditions are not helping him out
04:29But it felt like it was one of those moments in which you need to read the situation a whole
04:34lot better
04:34Yes, there's an overlapping run of Juliano Simeone
04:36But the defenders had gone with Simeone
04:38So it felt like it was an opportunity for
04:40Nico Paz to cut to his left foot and take the shot himself
04:44Once the overlap happened
04:46Felt like Iceland were in a position where at the very least they were going to be able to defend
04:50They did enough just defensively and eventually Argentina found themselves in an outside position
05:00Those two teams have only met once before but it was
05:04At a World Cup
05:05It was almost exactly eight years ago to the day in Moscow
05:10It was the opening game for both teams and it ended as a 1-1 draw
05:14That was when Iceland were perhaps at the peak of their powers
05:24This is Jose Lopez
05:26He's only made one start in his career for Argentina prior to die
05:31He sets that up with an invitation
05:39That's really good work from Jose Manuel
05:41El Flaco Lopez
05:43Good turn in open space
05:45He's able to find the supporting run on the right-hand side
05:48Lisandro Martinez
05:49Not surprisingly taking somebody down
05:51That's something he does quite well and quite naturally
05:56The hold-up play from Jose Manuel Lopez so far has been really good
06:00And the combination play
06:01Trying to find Nico Paz also was very good
06:03But good defending in the end from Iceland
06:09Jose Lopez will be a newer name to some followers of the Argentina national team
06:13With as many mentioned just one start
06:15To night and
06:17Another three substitute appearances
06:21He plays this club football in Brazil with Palmeiras
06:24And he has been
06:26Big time goalscorer
06:29In the Brazilian Serie A hasn't he's?
06:31On the top goal scorer award twice in the last four seasons.
06:42An age of 25, Jose Lopez perhaps just a little bit older than some of those new arrivals in the
06:49Argentina squad.
06:57Another thing to take into consideration when you watch this starting 11-4, Lionel Scaloni in Argentina, who scored the
07:06clinching penalty kick for Argentina in the World Cup final?
07:11It wasn't Messi. It's not Juliano, it's Gonzalo Montiel.
07:16The responsibility fell on Gonzalo Montiel and so that's why it's important to get some repetition for some of these
07:23players because they may be the guys that are called upon in a game-clinching moment to make that sort
07:31of difference.
07:34You know in the knockout rounds there are going to be moments just like that.
07:39I mean Argentina had them in the last World Cup, didn't they?
07:42Taken the distance by the Netherlands.
07:51Again they have Algeria to open up their World Cup, Group J to venture their title and then that's in
07:59Kansas City and then they'll camp out in Dallas for the next two games against Austria and Jordan.
08:14People at home you got a chance to see Dick Vitale's top freshman. Here are my year basketball. That's what
08:20I call him. Caleb Wilson, an absolute star.
08:23In a game-clinching moment to make that sort of difference.
08:30You know in the knockout rounds there are going to be moments just like that. I mean Argentina had them
08:36in the last World Cup, didn't they?
08:37They've taken the distance by the Netherlands.
08:39They've taken the distance by the Netherlands.
08:47Again they have Algeria to open up their World Cup, Group J, to venture their title.
08:52And then that's in Kansas City and then they'll camp out in Dallas for the next two games against Austria
08:59and Jordan.
09:10getting to see plenty of the American Heartlands after being in College Station just the other night.
09:26Here's Victor Poulsen.
09:28He's a player for Iceland with some MLS experience in his past with the New York Rebels and with DC
09:35United.
09:50Iceland doing a fair amount of travel themselves in recent days. Their last friendly was in Japan.
09:59The hosts there, World Cup send-off. They lost that game by a goal to nil.
10:07It was back on the 31st of May in front of 62,000 and here they are in front of
10:1187,000.
10:16And if you look back to the World Cup qualifying campaign for Iceland, in a group with France, Ukraine and
10:24Azerbaijan,
10:25it really was going to come down, not to the matches against France because you don't expect to win those,
10:30it was going to come down to the matches against Ukraine. And when you lose twice to Ukraine,
10:38it really doesn't matter what else you do in the group because they went on to beat Azerbaijan twice
10:43but the damage was already done. And in losing twice to Ukraine, as expected,
10:49they finished third in the group and gone, not in the World Cup.
10:53Yeah. Those two wins against Azerbaijan. Actually, they're only two wins in the last calendar year.
11:05Back to Marulli. The Marseille keeper, who's winning just his eighth Argentina camp tonight.
11:12This is still awaiting number one keeper, Emi Martinez's return to fitness.
11:23Uh-oh. All right. Yeah. Yeah, there he is. Okay. Everybody go crazy.
11:30They're all clapping for Rodrigo de Paul, I'm sure.
11:34The bodyguard, he's always by his side.
11:40The question is, uh, for how long do they get to see the main man tonight?
11:45Stuart Robson in our pregame studio are predicting about 30 minutes.
11:48That's about right, Ali, with that muscle strain and the left hamstring to try and protect.
11:55This is what I would do if our Lionel Escalon.
11:59I would have to be 100% sure that Lionel Messi is fit and ready to go.
12:06Without any sort of question or doubt whatsoever.
12:11Because the last thing I would want is to put him out there just because I want him to get
12:17some minutes.
12:19And he wasn't quite ready.
12:21And let me just say, if you re-aggravate a muscle strain at this point, more than likely it means
12:31that, yeah, the World Cup is not for him.
12:35Yeah.
12:37So, if he's ready to go and fit and you want to get him some minutes, so be it.
12:42But if there's any question, let him sit comfortably in that same bench that we just saw.
12:48Yeah.
12:50Yeah.
12:50He made an abrupt exit, didn't he, into Miami's last MLS game before the international break.
12:56That was back on May the 24th.
13:00Two and a half weeks.
13:01One, two and a half weeks.
13:10Redina, Otamendi, Barco, Bacheco score, leaving it for Ezekiel Palacios.
13:25In that game, I mentioned, the only prior meeting between Argentina and Iceland in Moscow, a 1-1 draw.
13:31Sergio Aguero was Argentina's scorer.
13:35In for Finn Boggesson equalizing, and Nino Messi actually missed a penalty in that game, you might remember.
13:5120 minutes gone here, in Auburn, glad you could be with us, Adrian Healy and Alejandro Moreno watching Argentina put
14:03through their paces for the last time before they start their defence of the World Cup title.
14:08They won so thrillingly in Qatar, and this is promising, it broke down right at the end, Barco couldn't pick
14:16up their defence.
14:16The final pass.
14:19But in that turn in tight space, you saw what is so exciting about Nico Pass.
14:26Elegant with his touches on the ball, and while he has a big body and is a big frame, still
14:32moves very well with the ball in his feet.
14:34In tight spaces, they're looking to combine.
14:36As I mentioned earlier, he had a great season at Como, and they're waiting for him to have that same
14:41sort of impact with this national team.
14:43Yeah.
14:45Eight appearances so far for the 21-year-old pass.
14:48Just the one goal to this point.
14:52Got a chance for Argentina to sink their teeth into a free kick here.
14:57Won by Jose Lopez.
15:00Biggest issue that Nico Pass has, again, good combination.
15:04I've been talking about the flag for Lopez and how well he's done with the hold of play.
15:08The biggest issue that Nico Pass has is, well, that position is occupied by none other than Lionel Messi.
15:15So until Lionel Messi walks out the door, Nico Pass is going to be comfortably sitting on the bench.
15:24And he did have such a fabulous season with Como, didn't he?
15:27Since Fabregas, his club manager, just raving about it.
15:30The 21-year-old.
15:30Real Madrid, by the way, still own half his rights.
15:33And there's certainly a scenario where he could end up back at the Bernabeu.
15:38It did come through their youth academy.
15:42Especially when then Real Madrid goes and spends a ton of money to go get Franco Mastantuono.
15:47And that doesn't really pan out.
15:49You had a young Argentina already in your books.
15:51You decided to allow him to go to Como while this guy could have been playing for you all along.
15:57That's the Argentina free kick.
16:01And almost split the uprights here at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
16:09You talk him up, Ali, and then that happens.
16:15I'm sorry, are you blaming that on me?
16:20There's Elias Olafsson, the Icelandic keeper.
16:25Bit of a star in the Danish league, Olafsson.
16:31Now then, this cooling break is brought to you by Gatorade.
16:37As we reach the halfway point of the first half.
16:40A scene that's going to become very familiar, Ali, over the next month or so.
16:49I have no issues with people hydrating and drinking Gatorade.
16:53I have an issue with the cooling break, though.
16:59Broken play, missed clearance, another missed clearance, poor defending.
17:03They're just kind of looking at the ball, not really reacting in time.
17:09Valentin Barco decides just to put his laces behind the ball.
17:13Olafsson sees his late.
17:16Tries to react, but can't quite get there.
17:181-0.
17:20Super finish for a man for whom goal scoring has not always come easy.
17:25He only scored twice for Strasbourg, his French first division club last season.
17:35In some ways, he's a bit of an Argentine.
17:38Clint Dempsey, Ali.
17:39He used to make a 450-kilometer round trip to training at Boca Juniors,
17:44because there was no room for him in the academy accommodation.
17:49So him and his dad used to make that round trip drive four times a week, Barco.
17:57And perseverance paid off for him.
18:01He's found his place, hasn't he?
18:02He had an awkward move to England with Brighton.
18:04Didn't quite work out for him there, but he's really flourished at Strasbourg.
18:09And it's going to be fascinating to see if he can really become a factor for Leonor Scaloni.
18:16And what I like about him, and it's something that I noticed in the game against Honduras,
18:19and you're seeing the same thing here tonight against Iceland,
18:22is that sometimes if you are intimidated by the opportunity to play with Argentina
18:29in a World Cup in this sort of stage,
18:32you don't exactly come to the ball all that often.
18:35You may just find yourself hiding away from tight areas.
18:39In the case of Valentin Barco, he's just looking to get on the ball all the time.
18:42In tight areas, with space, he's coming to get the ball from center back,
18:45but he's also going to get the ball from the attacking players.
18:48He's willing to run him behind.
18:50My question with Valentin Barco is, is size going to be an issue?
18:54He's not quite the physical presence that you would want in the midfield,
18:58but certainly a guy that with the ball on his feet can distribute play
19:01and can keep the rhythm going for Argentina.
19:06Certainly Barco has caught the eye, as has both José López and Nico Paz.
19:14He was opening 25 minutes.
19:23Argentina, for those of you keeping count,
19:25have an excellent record in the last friendlies they play before a World Cup.
19:29They won their last seven of them.
19:34In recent years, Ali, they've made a habit of playing teams
19:38fairly low down the world pecking order, haven't they?
19:43I was astonished to read this is their first European opponent
19:46they've had since the World Cup final against France at the end of 2022.
19:58I'm sure Argentina would argue that when you play three and a half years' worth of qualifiers
20:04it's incomparable that that it's as competitive as it gets, but point taken, and, oh, by the way,
20:11I said that Valentin Barco perhaps may struggle with his size and the physicality of the game.
20:16He decides, you know what, I'll just go on a two-footed challenge and prove you wrong.
20:22It's almost like he was listening, Ali.
20:26The upshot is, uh, the free kick here, which Goodman Cern is standing over.
20:32Johannesson as well.
20:36That's Goodman Cern who takes it and didn't clear the first defender.
20:39But I'm not sure Barco, who's everywhere at the moment, isn't he?
20:43I'm sure he was the full ten yards and he's certainly feeling the effects.
20:59Pretty sure he takes this on the face, which is less than ideal, right?
21:07And he's probably going to be brought off to be evaluated, I'm guessing, or maybe not.
21:16Appeared to be reluctantly walking towards the sideline.
21:18Maybe he was just going to take his place in the one-man wall again.
21:24And that hits a throw this time.
21:29And that was, uh, by the, uh, combined ranks of the Argentina defence,
21:34but only as far as Elletson.
21:36And he missed that early chance for Iceland.
21:39Mikael Elletson, who misses club football in Italy with Genoa.
21:44Look out here, there they're going to be at the beginning of the organisations.
21:53Crash ofateful heads as Fagundo Medina down.
22:07Medina in at left-back tonight.
22:12And gets him with a chicken wing.
22:17arms straight away from the body
22:22it's a top of the head it is a foul
22:27Victor Paulson also receives a yellow car
22:29I think that's a bit much but there you go
22:34you have to agree
22:35nothing particularly malicious about the challenge even though it caught Medina
22:41Medina probably behind
22:43Nicholas Tagliafico in the pecking order for that left-back spot Ali and
22:47Tagliafico is another 33 year old the reports coming out of Argentina is that
22:53he came out of the game against Honduras with some muscle fatigue so he was not
22:57going to feature today
23:02Medina has not been to a World Cup at the age of 27
23:06only eight prior appearances for the Albi Celeste
23:20Gretasen just guiding it back to Olafsson
23:30a little careless in possession the upshot is Barco on the ground and another free kick
23:38in Argentina's way to mention another booking
23:41was a combo package of mistakes from Gretasen he's trying to dribble
23:46out of pressure unable to do that and then he follows that up with a foul and a yellow car
23:51and now an opportunity for Argentina
23:56to go through some of that set-piece routines perhaps it's Giovanni Lo Celso
24:03how much he is looking forward to this World Cup having missed out on the last one just
24:07uh truly weeks before it picked up uh muscle injury just before guitar
24:15had to watch from the sidelines
24:22Lo Celso's delivery a tasty one dealt with as far as Lopez
24:39I do wonder
24:41Adrian about the long list of players from Argentina that have been rested over the course of the last couple
24:48of games
24:48it's not just Messi
24:51Villan Alvarez and Divo Martinez and Cristian Romero and Leandro Paredes and the list goes on and on and I
24:56kind of go all right
24:58there is resting and then there is well are we still concerned about the level of fitness of this player
25:03and are they magically going to acquire the level of fitness ahead of the first game against Algeria so
25:09how much of this is rest how much of
25:11it is actual concern
25:13to make sure that these players get to the World Cup in the best level possible
25:17but how do you do that if you're not able to get out on the field
25:20well
25:23well
25:24we will not know the answer to that question fully until uh
25:29June the 16th a week from tonight
25:52it's gonna be Argentina's 19th World Cup overall the third most of any nation
26:00it's going to mention they were 14th in a row
26:07we'll go back to 1978 when they hosted it
26:11we've been to five finals since then
26:15it's time for the most
26:18for Germany in that time span
26:26this team and this version of Argentina
26:29not necessarily those players that are on the field tonight
26:33but just in general
26:35it has such a similar feel to the
26:39transition from 1986 World Cup winning that with Maradona to the team that then
26:45lost in the final two at the time was Germany in the 1990 World Cup
26:52to our colleague by the way
26:54Jurgen Klisman who lifted the trophy that night
26:58regardless I digress
27:00it um
27:02point being is that
27:03it
27:04that team in 1990 was an aging Argentina team
27:08that still had a lot of the same talented players in the 1986 World Cup
27:13but it was in the back end also what Maradona
27:16what he was in 1986 and wasn't able to replicate in 1990
27:22right there it's a really really good comparison
27:25I remember that team well
27:26there there and there's a similar feel to to what this team is going to be in this World Cup
27:33as compared to what that team was in the 1990 World Cup
27:36yeah
27:38and they had to fight and claw and make things ugly to
27:43get their way through the knockout rounds of that tournament
27:46even beating Brazil
27:47remember it well
27:51and of course upended the host nation Italy along the way
27:56and it's beating Brazil and Brazil was hitting the post and the crossbar and all sorts of different things but
28:02then a moment of magic from Maradona and finding
28:05Claudio Paul Canizia
28:07and him getting around Taffarelli scoring the game winning 1-0
28:11and you kind of go
28:13I can see that happening for this team in this World Cup
28:16that sort of situation which you have that moment of magic when I miss it
28:20but how much magic will we feel
28:24not quite sure
28:27header over the top there from Gretasen
28:30after the delivery from Isaac Johannesson
28:35no trouble for Geronimo Rulli
28:41flourishing with Marseille
28:43later on in his career at the age of 34
28:48a bit of a careless giveaway
28:53that's going to have numbers forged
28:56during a spell of possession here
29:03spell almost ended there but
29:05the Celso's closing down
29:11and it's a cautionary tale if we're going to go with the comparison to the 1990
29:15World Cup and the feel of this team
29:17they lost their first game against Cameroon
29:21yep, 1-0
29:25infamous upsets of all time
29:27of course Argentina
29:28also lost their first game last time out
29:31in Qatar against Saudi Arabia
29:35and it's Algeria who will
29:40try and repeat those astonishing feats
29:51the interesting thing about the way their group is set up
29:54is that if they
29:55either win or finish runners up in their group J
29:59they will collide head-on
30:01with either Spain or Uruguay in all likelihood
30:05those two firm favourites to come out of their group
30:09so that would
30:09you
Comments