Wednesday, September 02, 2009

And the first probable lineup is........

The team Diego MARADONA decided to line up during training on Wednesday is this:

ANDUJAR

ZANETTI - Sebastián DOMINGUEZ (Velez Sarsfield, former Corinthians) - OTAMENDI - HEINZE

Maxi (on the right) - MASCHERANO - VERON - DATOLO

MESSI and TEVEZ

There you have it.

I like DOMINGUEZ. Fast, good in the air. The good thing is that he plays every day with Nicolás OTAMENDI at Velez. The bad thing? Unproven in this kind of matches. But he's a warrior and a very intelligent player. Risky, but could pay off. We'll see. It's not even confirmed that he will play.

As for the rest...it's what I've been saying. MESSI and TEVEZ didn't play bad at all in Quito (were unlucky not to score, but worked well together and there are little doubts on whether then can produce the goods or not). There is no better moment or match to prove their worth than on Saturday against Brazil.

Midfield looks interesting. Not a surprise to me as Diego's been praising VERON for a long time now and he works very well with MESSI when the two combine for those nice little short passes. His experience is a plus and his ability to dictate the rhythm of the game is second only to that of RIQUELME (who I repeat: QUIT the national team).

DATOLO showed some great flashes wide on the left and he clearly benefits from the injury suffered by Jonas GUTIERREZ and from Angel DI MARIA's suspension (and the fact that MARADONA doesn't like CAMBIASSO).

Not a bad option to have on the left if he shows the ability to cope with the enormous pressure he will have.

Maxi? He's got it. Hopefully he'll show what he can do again with Argentina as he did in the past and hasn't been doing as of late.

21 comments:

Roy said...

Seba, from what I've been reading(Clarin and what not), it seems it's Papa ahead of Heinze.

Messi and Tevez to start, really? I would of prefered Licha, but I suppose Tevez works.

If Dominguez and Otamendi do start together, it will be really interesting. Both have never been tested on the big stage, but they do play together, so that has to be a plus. Papa over Heinze... eh, I don't rate either of them very highly.

Hopefully Veron is fit and ready to go, because we're really going to need him to link-up with Messi very well. Maxi better have a great game, he's been too inconsistent lately.

Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with the line-up. If everyone plays well, we should be able to beat Brazil. Vamos Maradona, Vamos Argentina!

Anonymous said...

For this game I like this. 4-4-2 is what we may have to do to plug the midfield and back vs Brasil. We can not afford to play 3 up front vs a counterattacking team such as Brsil. Again I would of loved to seen Cambiasso but it shall not be. Maybe Licha can start with Messi for the Paraguay game or have Messi,Tevez,Licha. Or Messi,Kun,Licha for that game. Wait Seba, did you say Riquelme quit? I think this is the first time I heard you say that haha I am just pulling your leg. So lets do this!

Jack!

Anonymous said...

Just wondering besides the net where else can this game be viewed? I am in Los Angeles and the sports bar that normally the show down between the two closed. I called a ton of places but none will be showing the game because it is on PPV. I would rather go to the bar and watch it then on the tv or the net. So any one from LA, can shed some light on this MAJOR problem. I am not sure if our restaurants will be showing the game. But that was my next places to call.

Jack!

Sebastian said...

Jack, I really hope you get to watch the game. I'm sure someone will give you a tip on where to watch it in LA.

Roy...I don't think PAPA will play instead of HEINZE. MARADONA loves HEINZE (as PEKERMAN, BASILE and BIELSA did before him and I still don't understand) and if he is in the team it is because of his leadership and his reputation as a type of player you would want when the temperature raises (again...not me...but the manager who like him).

No way he'll miss the game (if he is fit). No way in hell.

Some news from training?

The lineup above won 7-0 over Tristán Suárez (the nearest team from the Ezeiza training ground, that's why they always do the 'sparring' job with our national team).

The scorers?

DATOLO and TEVEZ with one goal each and Lionel MESSI with 5 scores to add to the pair he scored on Tuesday in another training session.

Hey...Lio...save some for Saturday, please!

johnny said...

Jack!-If I were you I would start scouting for any Brazilian or Argentinian restaurants in the LA area. Those and some diehard futbol related sports bars, but those are tough to find in most areas of the USA. Either that or jump a flight to Miami. You would be able to find the match on there.

Dave P said...

Lineup looks good, have not heard much about Dominguez, but I trust your word Seba in that he is a warrior. At this point I'm tired of all the speculation, let the game begin. It will be interesting to see if Datolo can track back in defense, as well as to see if Maxi will be a threat at all. If nothing works out I say put Salvio in for Maxi. Other then that looks like the lineup I was thinking.

King Aguero said...

Tevez shouldn't start he has been garbage for the NT lately

Mohd said...

i do not like the formation at all...but with maradona's selections it could be the best we have...anyway, i just hope we can beat brazil in any possible way.

Mike (Canada) said...

"(and the fact that MARADONA doesn't like CAMBIASSO)"

what is his problem with Cambiasso?

he would make our midfield so much stronger.

Dave P said...

Guys I understand your distress and hatred towards the call ups, but the truth is that the players who are called up have been called up, there is nothing that can be done. At this point Seba is just reporting facts and probable line ups. whats the point in talking about Cambiasso when the game that matters is on Saturday. Let's just focus on the game and the players that are on the team now. Oh and Tevez is a work horse and deserves to start up front with Messi. If you think Tevez has been garbage, its been the entire team that has been garbage, Tevez always shows hustle and heart. K I'm done until the game starts.

King Aguero said...

Tevz has 19 goals for the NT since 2004! Aguero has 19 goals for the NT since 2007!

Explain to me how thats considered deserving to start?

sirus said...

Tevez not only goalscorer he is hardworking man...

My wish... Papa for Heinze, Licha for Maxi and Messi on the right...

Brazilian defense is more physically... We r need big striker who can beat Brazilian defense on the air... Milito or Licha...

Messi and Tevez couldn't score for us in 2007 against Brazilian physically defense...

Sebastian said...

King Aguero...I know you're a big fan of Kun, but there's no way he scored 19 goals for Argentina.

I have him at just 7 in 19 matches. In FIFA tournaments (senior level), he scored 4 in 10 goals (during the current WCQ campaign).

He had 6 in Youth World Cup (that hardly counts because it's U20) and 2 at the Olympics (U23). Of course this is not counting friendlies.

http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/statisticsandrecords/players/player=228528/index.html

Don't get me wrong, I'm the first one to admit TEVEZ is having a stinker of a WCQ campaign.

I just wanted to give you the correct facts.

Anonymous said...

I do think were going to be fine on saturday keep it in mind that the barzilian dont have the best record playing us at home.. licha should start over any forward due to form but we all known thats not the case....
Vamos..
watch we will win 2-1

Lucas

Anonymous said...

Tevez does not have 19 goals for the country, nor does Kun. They dont have that combined. Maybe you are the Romario syndrome counting goals while he has scored in the backyard with his daughter haha, I am just kidding. Messi has a a decent average, almost a goal at every games. We do not have a Batigol who scored for fun. Seba is right though with the numbers. I was like no way does Tevez have that many goals. He is known for not scoring goals but is still loved because he does everything else. I wish Lucho Figueroa would get a chance, if he was with Boca he may of got the call up.

Jack!

Rune said...

I think Lio has something like 12 goals in 37 matches for our NT.
So, a goal in every game record? No way!
I guess Seba can verify this.

Diego will always use Heinze, I just think Heinze is better(or less terrible) as a CD than as a left back in this stage of his career. But maybe Papa is not good enough defensively for such a big game. But he can go forward, Heinze can absolutely not.

Theteam otherwise is ok....I guess Datolo will be replaced by Salvio in the second half, when we're one goal down and need to attack.

Anonymous said...

Let me fix my error, I meant to say around every 3 games or so. That is why I put decent average.

Jack!

Joe said...

I like the lineup. Something that scares me is not getting a Red card in the game. I hope that Teves he can controll his temprament. Otherwise i am truly happy if we start with Teves and Messi. Because Teves is a better and more hardworking player then Augoero. The players that i fear in Brazil are Kaka, Robinho and Cesar. Hoppfully he will not have a good game in goal. My prediction 4-2. IDWT - In Diego we trust.

johnny said...

Waaaayyy off topic-FIFA invokes 1 year transfer ban on Chelsea ! Yessssss !!!!:)

Unknown said...

That;s exactly what I thought too, Johnny :)

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