Argentina vs. Brazil - El Clasico Preview

It's time for El Clasico; Argentina vs. Brazil. You've heard the news, the rumors, but now it's time for the Official Preview!

Only once outside El Monumental
Argentina has only played one World Cup Qualifier outside of the Monumental Stadium in the last 12 years. This came on November 16, 1997(in a France 1998 World Cup Qualifier) against Colombia. The match ended 1-1 at La Bombonera(Boca Juniors' playing ground). That game marked Juan Roman RIQUELME's full International debut for Argentina who at the time was coached by Daniel PASSARELLA.

Rosario not comforting
Argentina has played against Brazil twice in Rosario and has not managed a victory. Not only have they never won, they have never scored in Rosario when playing against Brazil. The first time was at the 1975 Copa America where Brazil defeated Argentina 1-0. The second time was at the 1978 FIFA World Cup, where the match ended in a 0-0 draw.

Argentina overall record against Brazil
Argentina and Brazil have played a total of 93 times(at International Men Senior level). Brazil have 35 wins compared to Argentina's 34 with 24 draws in between. However Argentina has scored more goals with 149, as opposed to Brazil's 145.

Diego MARADONA's goal scoring record against Brazil
MARADONA has scored only 1 goal against Brazil and it came in the Copa de Oro tournament. The match took place on January 4th, 1981 in Montevideo, Uruguay. It was Diego's 11th International goal(aswell as his 24th International cap) and the match ended 1-1.

Diego MARADONA's overall record against Brazil
As a player, Diego represented Argentina 91 times. During those 91 times he played against Brazil 6 times. The first time was at the 1979 Copa America where Argentina lost 2-1 in Rio de Janeiro. The second time was at the Copa de Oro in Montevideo, Uruguay where he scored his only goal(ever) against Brazil in a 1-1 Draw. The third time Diego was not so lucky as it came at the 1982 World Cup, in Barcelona, Spain where Brazil beat Argentina 3-1. The fourth time, once again, Diego was not so lucky. It was at a Copa America(this time the 1989 edition) where Brazil eliminated Argentina 2-0, in Rio de Janeiro. The fifth time however, Diego would get his revenge. At the 1990 World Cup, Argentina eliminated Brazil 1-0 with a goal by Claudio CANIGGIA(and a fantastic assist by MARADONA). The last time was more or less a friendly(A.F.A 100th Anniversary to be precise), in Buenos Aires(on February 18, 1993). The match ended in a 1-1 Draw.

Claudio CANIGGIA's winning goal at the 1990 World Cup in Italy.

Argentina vs. Brazil - World Cup Matches
Argentina played against Brazil a total of 4 times at FIFA World Cups. The first time was at the 1974 edition(in West Germany), where Brazil defeated Argentina 2-1. The second time was in 1978(in Argentina... and in Rosario!), however the match ended 0-0. The third time was at Diego MARADONA's first ever World Cup, where Brazil beat Argentina 3-1. The last time came in Italy 1990, where Argentina were able to defeat Brazil 1-0.

Argentina vs. Brazil - World Cup Qualifiers
In World Cup Qualifiers, Argentina and Brazil have played 5 Matches. Sharing the spoils with the following record...
Argentina: 2 Wins, 1 Draw with 7 goals scored.
Brazil: 2 Wins, 1 Draw with 8 goals scored.

2002 World Cup Qualifier
Sao Paulo, Brazil - Estádio do Morumbi - July 26, 2000.
Brazil won 3-1. ALEX scored once for Brazil, while VAMPETA scored twice. Matias ALMEYDA scored the only goal for Argentina. Javier ZANETTI and Juan VERON are the only survivors from that match that have been called-up to play on Saturday.

2002 World Cup Qualifier
Buenos Aires, Argentina - Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti - September 5, 2001.
Argentina won 2-1. Roberto AYALA scored an own goal, Marcelo GALLARDO scored for Argentina and CRIS(Brazil) scored an own goal. Javier ZANETTI is the only survivor from that match that has been called-up to play on Saturday. Note the date of the match: September 5, 2001.

Marcelo Gallardo's tying goal to make it 1-1.

CRIS' own goal(and game winning goal for Argentina).

2006 World Cup Qualifier
Belo Horizonte, Brazil - Estadio Magalhaes Pinto - June 2, 2004.
Brazil won 3-1. RONALDO scored three times(all 3 were penalties), while Juan Pablo SORIN scored for Argentina. Gabriel HEINZE, Javier MASCHERANO and Javier ZANETTI all played in that game while Carlos TEVEZ and Nicolas BURDISSO were unused substitutes. They have all been called-up to play on Saturday.

2006 World Cup Qualifier
Buenos Aires, Argentina - Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti - June 8, 2005.
Argentina won 3-1. Hernan CRESPO scored twice while Juan Roman RIQUELME scored once. Roberto CARLOS scored Brazil's only goal. Javier MASCHERANO, Gabriel HEINZE and Fabricio COLOCCINI all played in that game. Javier ZANETTI and Carlos TEVEZ were both used substitutes(ZANETTI came in the 71st minute for Luis GONZALEZ while Carlos TEVEZ came in the 82nd minute for Javier SAVIOLA). They have all been called-up to play on Saturday.

Hernan CRESPO's goal to make it 1-0.

Juan Roman RIQUELME's goal to make it 2-0.

Hernan CRESPO's second goal of the game to make it 3-0.

2010 World Cup Qualifier
Belo Horizonte, Brazil - Mineirao - June 18, 2008.
The match ended 0-0. Fabricio COLOCCINI, Nicolas BURDISSO, Fernando GAGO, Gabriel HEINZE, Javier ZANETTI, Javier MASCHERANO and Lionel MESSI all played in the match. Maxi RODRIGUEZ, Sergio AGUERO, Juan Pablo CARRIZO and Sebastian BATTAGLIA were all substitutes(Sergio AGUERO came in the 67th minute for Julio CRUZ). They have all been called-up to play on Saturday.

The Players
Argentina has called-up 37 different players so far in the Qualifiers. Javier ZANETTI and Lionel MESSI have played the most matches with 14 each. However MESSI has played 1251 minutes compared to ZANETTI's 1214 minutes.

Argentina has scored 19 goals(an average of 1.36 goals per game) and conceeded 14 goals(an average of 1.07 goals per game).
6 wins(5 at home, 1 away), 4 Draws(2 at home, 2 away) and 4 Losses(0 at home, 4 away).

Argentina Top Scorers
Sergio AGUERO, Juan Roman RIQUELME and Lionel MESSI lead Argentina in goal scoring with 4 goals each.

10 different goal scorers in 2010 World Cup Qualifiers:
Carlos TEVEZ: 1 Goal
Daniel DIAZ: 1 Goal
Esteban CAMBIASSO: 1 Goal
Gabriel MILITO: 1 Goal
Juan Roman RIQUELME: 4 Goals
Lionel MESSI: 4 Goals
Luis GONZALEZ: 1 Goal
Maxi RODRIGUEZ: 1 Goal
Rodrigo PALACIO: 1 Goal
Sergio AGUERO: 4 Goals

Out of the list of players, only Lionel MESSI and Sergio AGUERO have ever scored against Brazil and both of those goals came at a "junior" level. Lionel MESSI scored against Brazil at the U20 World Cup in The Netherlands. Sergio AGUERO scored 2 goals against Brazil, both of them just over a year ago at the 2008 Olympic Summer Games in Beijing. Argentina won both matches.

Argentina has never lost a game when Sergio AGUERO has scored. He's scored in 7 matches, resulting in 6 wins and 1 draw. The Draw came against Paraguay back in September 2008 in a World Cup Qualifier. However, when Carlos TEVEZ and Lionel MESSI both start a match up front(as the only two strikers for Argentina), the record is less than impressive. With 3 Wins, 6 Losses and 2 Draws.

Startling Line-up
Diego MARADONA has confirmed that the following is the starting line-up that will face Brazil.

ANDUJAR
ZANETTI---DOMINGUEZ---OTAMENDI---HEINZE
MAXI---MASCHERANO---VERON---DATOLO
MESSI---TEVEZ

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