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Sam Kelly ESPN FC
Argentina left the World Cup in a thrilling start to the knockout phase of Kazan, in a match where the two defenses seemed vulnerable, but only Argentina was seriously tested. For one of Russia's oldest teams in 2018, a reconstruction project is surely not far off, with another disappointing demonstration from the 2014 finalists highlighting the magnitude of the task to accomplish.
Positives
They were broadcast
Negatives
A chaotic tactical configuration that leaves serious questions about the ability of Jorge Sampaoli to guide Argentina to the next World Cup, the total absence of defense or midfield, and the deep feeling that, could not enjoy a player of the caliber of Lionel Messi, it will be difficult for Argentina to d & # 39; From the front
Manager's Grade out of 10
3 – It seems hardly credible that Sampaoli could recognize the changes that had brought about the improvement and the victory over Nigeria and then change things again, but he did: Lionel Messi on his own front; two wingers with no one to cross, and Ever Banega went past the pitch to find the range of passes he needed to shine. It was a bizarre alignment, and his changes failed to tip the game – Sergio Aguero aside – and this only served to emphasize the foolishness of starting without center before.
Let's be clear: some of the following rankings are much more of a reflection of the manager's tactics than players themselves
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best Players introduced after 70 minutes do not get any notes.)
GK Franco Armani, 5 – – He could not do much about the penalty, but he looked at Benjamin Pavard with a decided air. and allowed Kylian Mbappe to sneak under his body when he really should have done better.
DF Gabriel Mercado, 4 – He struggled against the wicket in the first half and, along with his midfield and defense colleagues, collapsed as the second wore.
DF Nicholas Otamendi, 4 – Otamendi was on his way for a 5 here, to be simply the least bad of the defenders of Argentina, until his stupid booking and Argument of lost time in the game stops when his team needed every second to try to equalize.
DF Marcos Rojo, 4 – Good against Nigeria, but much less impressive – in the first half of France had three dangerous counter-attacks, and two of them were directly targeted against Rojo, who did not answer. Shortened the penalty and was replaced at half-time
DF Nicolas Tagliafico, 5 – As in the other matches of this tournament, it is difficult to say that Tagliafico has done a lot of harm (compared to his teammates), but also hard to spot what he did well, beyond one or two timely interventions.
MF Enzo Perez, 5 – Part of a midfielder who was overwhelmed even before he was removed to make way for Aguero. The system left him confused as to what he should do, and he never found the passage distance he had shown against Croatia (in the first half) and Nigeria.
MF Javier Mascherano, 4 – Not everyone agreed that he had a bad game against Nigeria; surely not everyone will agree now either. And it's not entirely Mascherano's fault – he was left alone in the middle against a fast-forward counterattack in a display that brought back memories of Diego Maradona's exit from the FIFA World Cup. World 2010 against Germany. Confirmed his international retirement after the match. If he had done it six months or a year ago, maybe Argentina could have built something stronger here.
MF Ever Banega, 6 – Again, not quite his fault. the pitch only in his game-running display against Nigeria, and therefore Banega did not find his overtaking field until Sergio Aguero's introduction allowed him to drop deeper – and only then provisionally.
FW Cristian Pavon, 6 – A winger without center-forward to cross can only do as much. And Pavon did what, given his role and his abilities, he had probably been put in the team to do. For this reason, he gets the mark of "departure" of 6.
FW Angel Di Maria, 7 – A beautiful goal for the equalization of Argentina and a bright early second period for Di Maria claim to be the best player in Argentina. And given his performance in recent years, when Di Maria is Argentina's best player, it's clear that something went wrong.
FW Lionel Messi, 6 – Messi flourished by playing just to the right of a central striker … so here Sampaoli named him as a fake 9. Without a partner, he was the only one in the world. Central attack, Messi was once again expected to be both creator and finisher, but he can not pass the ball to himself. His beautiful late goal aid from Aguero to give hope to Argentina was a frustrating look at what could have been if the system had been different from the beginning.
Alternates
DF Federico Fazio, 3 – -Time to provide more solidity than Rojo had in the first half, and managed the impressive lap of being the worst Argentine defender on the ground, despite fierce competition.
FW Sergio Aguero, 7 – He led the line, took good positions behind the French defense and took his goal after having read Messi's intentions. His introduction could have been considered a master shot of a substitution, if it was not so painfully obvious that he (or Gonzalo Higuain) should have started the match.
FW Maxi Meza, N / R – Introduced too late for a note, and still had a quiet and ineffective game.
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