Friday, April 03, 2009
Mundo Albiceleste Podcast 03
Disaster in La Paz! Plenty to talk about after Argentina lost 6-1 in the altitude of Bolivia. For that, John and I are joined by two journalists friends. Martín from Argentina and Rafael from Brazil.
We discuss what went wrong, what should have been done to avoid such a heavy defeat and what comes ahead in Argentina's road to South Africa 2010.
Right-click on the following link and save it as an MP3 file or listen to it in your computer: download.
Enjoy! And don't forget to send us your views to argentina.correspondent@gmail.com or right here in the comments' box.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Comparing with previous WCQ campaigns
Let's make a memory exercise just to see how we are doing overall in this World Cup Qualifying campaign.
Ever since the qualification for France 1998, South American national teams have been all competing in only one group of 10, with every team facing each other twice (home and away). Before that, they were divided in two groups (some times more than two groups) and they played teams from their group in a one-month period. The form team, or the lucky one, would often advance, other than the best out of a period of two years of facing every team in the region both home and away.
To add to this explanation, there's something that helps us compare this campaign with the two previous ones. In France 1998, the order was different. Besides, since Brazil were World Cup holders and automatically qualified, there were only 9 teams taking place in the tournament. We can't really compared the current campaign with the one from 1998.
Now, if we compare the 2002 and 2006 campaigns with the current one (10 teams, home and away and same order in the fixtures), here's the result we get.
After the 12th round of matches, Argentina had collected:
29 points in 2002
25 points in 2006
19 points in 2010
Yes, our production when it comes to points collection clearly decreased. OK, but...let's read a little bit in detail into those numbers.
First of all, that BIELSA's team of Argentina set the record of 43 points at the end of the qualifying campaign for 2002. It was a product of 13 wins, 4 draws and only 1 defeat (away to Brazil). In my opinion, that campaign will be impossible to match, let alone beat.
It would be unfair to jump at Diego's jugular because we have 10 points less from what he had in 2002 or six less than this time of the year before Germany 2006. I guess you'll all agree with that. He's only been in charge for two matches and got 50% of the points at stake.
Competition in the region is getting fiercer and fiercer. Teams like Venezuela (even when they haven't taken points from us) are improving and winning games. Venezuela finished their 2002 qualification campaign with 16 points. They had 18 for 2006 and with six games to go, they already have 13 this time.
HOW MANY POINTS DO WE NEED TO QUALIFY?
Let's take a look at the qualified teams for previous World Cups and have in mind the fifth placed team (the one with a right to participate in a playoff to get to the World Cup), needed 27 points in 2002 and 25 points in 2006.
After 10 weeks in the 2002 WCQ campaign, Argentina had 29 points and were leading the standings. Behind them:
Brazil 21 (same as this time around); Paraguay 19; Ecuador and Uruguay 15.
For 2006, Argentina had 25 points and were ahead of Brazil (19); Paraguay (16); Ecuador (13) and Uruguay (11).
Based on statistics and what happened in the previous WCQ tournament, you can say we would need 6 points from our next 6 matches to at least make it to South Africa 2010 through the playoffs by finishing 5th in South America.
But leaders Paraguay are at 24 points (less that what Argentina had in both 2002 and 2006). Teams are beating each other in ways it didn't happen in the past. Chile are pretty much in the mix. Things are changing all the time.
THE KEY IS TO IMPROVE THE AWAY FORM
Several teams still have a good enough shot at that coveted fifth spot and away wins are extremely rare! Out of the 10 matches played between last weekend and Wednesday, only Chile managed to get an away win (at bottom-placed Perú).
This is very true, especially with Argentina.
It's our away form that's making the difference this time around.
Let's see...in 2002 (the record-setting campaign), we won four out of our six away matches up to the 12th round, with one draw (Bolivia) and one defeat (Brazil).
In 2006, we won at Bolivia, Perú and Venezuela, managed draws in Colombia and Chile and lost to Brazil for a 3 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss record.
In the current campaign, we have only defeated Venezuela away from home. Draws with Perú and Brazil and defeats at Colombia, Chile and Bolivia have put is in an uncomfortable position.
Our next visits are not exactly walks in the park: Ecuador (round 14); Paraguay (round 16) and Uruguay (round 18), but with good results at home, we will surely be able to secure enough points to make it to South Africa.
Again, things are tighter than ever before and the good news is that Argentina are 5 points clear from the 6th and 7th placed teams: Colombia and Ecuador. A win in Buenos Aires against Colombia will make it 8 points with only 15 to go. A win in Quito (not looking very likely, but nothing impossible) would also separate Argentina from Ecuador by a good margin of points.
Add to that the fact that Ecuador and Colombia still have to face each other (round 15 in Colombia) and that both have to play Uruguay, which means all of those teams will take points from each other. It's not that easy to cut the distance when you're coming from behind.
Look on the bright side!
Ever since the qualification for France 1998, South American national teams have been all competing in only one group of 10, with every team facing each other twice (home and away). Before that, they were divided in two groups (some times more than two groups) and they played teams from their group in a one-month period. The form team, or the lucky one, would often advance, other than the best out of a period of two years of facing every team in the region both home and away.
To add to this explanation, there's something that helps us compare this campaign with the two previous ones. In France 1998, the order was different. Besides, since Brazil were World Cup holders and automatically qualified, there were only 9 teams taking place in the tournament. We can't really compared the current campaign with the one from 1998.
Now, if we compare the 2002 and 2006 campaigns with the current one (10 teams, home and away and same order in the fixtures), here's the result we get.
After the 12th round of matches, Argentina had collected:
29 points in 2002
25 points in 2006
19 points in 2010
Yes, our production when it comes to points collection clearly decreased. OK, but...let's read a little bit in detail into those numbers.
First of all, that BIELSA's team of Argentina set the record of 43 points at the end of the qualifying campaign for 2002. It was a product of 13 wins, 4 draws and only 1 defeat (away to Brazil). In my opinion, that campaign will be impossible to match, let alone beat.
It would be unfair to jump at Diego's jugular because we have 10 points less from what he had in 2002 or six less than this time of the year before Germany 2006. I guess you'll all agree with that. He's only been in charge for two matches and got 50% of the points at stake.
Competition in the region is getting fiercer and fiercer. Teams like Venezuela (even when they haven't taken points from us) are improving and winning games. Venezuela finished their 2002 qualification campaign with 16 points. They had 18 for 2006 and with six games to go, they already have 13 this time.
HOW MANY POINTS DO WE NEED TO QUALIFY?
Let's take a look at the qualified teams for previous World Cups and have in mind the fifth placed team (the one with a right to participate in a playoff to get to the World Cup), needed 27 points in 2002 and 25 points in 2006.
After 10 weeks in the 2002 WCQ campaign, Argentina had 29 points and were leading the standings. Behind them:
Brazil 21 (same as this time around); Paraguay 19; Ecuador and Uruguay 15.
For 2006, Argentina had 25 points and were ahead of Brazil (19); Paraguay (16); Ecuador (13) and Uruguay (11).
Based on statistics and what happened in the previous WCQ tournament, you can say we would need 6 points from our next 6 matches to at least make it to South Africa 2010 through the playoffs by finishing 5th in South America.
But leaders Paraguay are at 24 points (less that what Argentina had in both 2002 and 2006). Teams are beating each other in ways it didn't happen in the past. Chile are pretty much in the mix. Things are changing all the time.
THE KEY IS TO IMPROVE THE AWAY FORM
Several teams still have a good enough shot at that coveted fifth spot and away wins are extremely rare! Out of the 10 matches played between last weekend and Wednesday, only Chile managed to get an away win (at bottom-placed Perú).
This is very true, especially with Argentina.
It's our away form that's making the difference this time around.
Let's see...in 2002 (the record-setting campaign), we won four out of our six away matches up to the 12th round, with one draw (Bolivia) and one defeat (Brazil).
In 2006, we won at Bolivia, Perú and Venezuela, managed draws in Colombia and Chile and lost to Brazil for a 3 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss record.
In the current campaign, we have only defeated Venezuela away from home. Draws with Perú and Brazil and defeats at Colombia, Chile and Bolivia have put is in an uncomfortable position.
Our next visits are not exactly walks in the park: Ecuador (round 14); Paraguay (round 16) and Uruguay (round 18), but with good results at home, we will surely be able to secure enough points to make it to South Africa.
Again, things are tighter than ever before and the good news is that Argentina are 5 points clear from the 6th and 7th placed teams: Colombia and Ecuador. A win in Buenos Aires against Colombia will make it 8 points with only 15 to go. A win in Quito (not looking very likely, but nothing impossible) would also separate Argentina from Ecuador by a good margin of points.
Add to that the fact that Ecuador and Colombia still have to face each other (round 15 in Colombia) and that both have to play Uruguay, which means all of those teams will take points from each other. It's not that easy to cut the distance when you're coming from behind.
Look on the bright side!
MESSI: "It's impossible to play in the altitude"
On his way to Barcelona, Lionel MESSI talked to the media at the Ezeiza airport.
This is what he said:
"We didn't expect to lose. Let alone losing by such a margin".
"I'm hurt. Without wanting to make excuses, we struggled to play there. They hit us at every right moment in the match. Bolivia had a perfect game and we couldn't match them".
"They never stopped and they were faster than we were".
"Personally, I think playing in La Paz is impossible, but there's no excuse. All the teams in this qualification campaign have to go and play there".
This is what he said:
"We didn't expect to lose. Let alone losing by such a margin".
"I'm hurt. Without wanting to make excuses, we struggled to play there. They hit us at every right moment in the match. Bolivia had a perfect game and we couldn't match them".
"They never stopped and they were faster than we were".
"Personally, I think playing in La Paz is impossible, but there's no excuse. All the teams in this qualification campaign have to go and play there".
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
WCQ South America - recap and standings
After a week in which each team played twice and none managed to get maximum points, the South American World Cup Qualifying Group is getting tighter and tighter with still a lot to play for and not team sure of a ticket to go to South Africa.
Here are the results from the 12nd round of fixtures:
Venezuela 2-0 Colombia
Bolivia 6-1 Argentina (how it hurts!)
Ecuador 1-1 Paraguay
Chile 0-0 Uruguay
Brazil 3-0 Perú
The standings now look like this:
Paraguay 24 points
Brazil 21 points
Chile 20 points
Argentina 19 points
-------------------
Uruguay 17 points
-------------------
Colombia 14 points
Ecuador 14 points
Venezuela 13 points
Bolivia 12 points
Perú 7 points
Argentina went down to fourth place after being placed second before the heavy defeat at Bolivia and sure missed a chance to get even closer to Paraguay and widen the gap with the teams aiming for the fifth spot (which guarantees a playoff with the fourth team from the CONCACAF region).
ON THE UP:
In my opinion, Chile and Uruguay are the biggest winners from these two rounds of matches.
Getting four points from a possible total of six, both teams have helped their causes and continue well in contention for a place in the next World Cup (after missing out of Germany).
Brazil, even when some would think they dropped points in Ecuador, escaped with an undeserved point from Quito and had no problems to beat Perú at home to claim second place.
IN THE BUBBLE:
Argentina and Colombia got two easy home wins only to fail dramatically at their next hurdle. For Argentina, the chance of rebounding is bigger and the margin of error too. Colombia can't score for toffee, are currently out of qualification spots and they next visit Buenos Aires.
Paraguay had two difficult away matches. They lost to a fairly solid Uruguayan side at Montevideo, but then they rescued a point in difficult Quito with 10-men against Ecuador to keep their well-earned first place in the standings.
Venezuela looked out of sorts in Buenos Aires but rebounded nicely with a derby win against Colombia. They will need all the luck in the world, but they're in with a realistic shot at making it to their first ever FIFA World Cup.
Bolivia were left with a sweet taste in their mouthes, but 12 total points are still some distance short from looking encouraging. They can build up on their historical win over Argentina but they need to get maximum points from their home matches as well as winning some points away from La Paz.
OUT OF LUCK:
To me Ecuador are the biggest losers of these two matches. At home for both games, they let Brazil escape with a point on Sunday and they repeated the same with Paraguay on Wednesday. Sunday at least had a positive feeling about it because it was Ecuador the one who scored in the dying minutes and it was Brazil. Wednesday was heartbreaking for Ecuador because they conceded so late. Instead of taking a deserved six points, they got only two and they are currently outside qualification places, with only themselves to blame.
Perú are hopeless. Six goals conceded in two matches (1-3 at home to Chile; 0-3 away to Brazil). Only seven points. Last in the standings. Really, there's nothing positive for them to look at at the moment.
Here are the results from the 12nd round of fixtures:
Venezuela 2-0 Colombia
Bolivia 6-1 Argentina (how it hurts!)
Ecuador 1-1 Paraguay
Chile 0-0 Uruguay
Brazil 3-0 Perú
The standings now look like this:
Paraguay 24 points
Brazil 21 points
Chile 20 points
Argentina 19 points
-------------------
Uruguay 17 points
-------------------
Colombia 14 points
Ecuador 14 points
Venezuela 13 points
Bolivia 12 points
Perú 7 points
Argentina went down to fourth place after being placed second before the heavy defeat at Bolivia and sure missed a chance to get even closer to Paraguay and widen the gap with the teams aiming for the fifth spot (which guarantees a playoff with the fourth team from the CONCACAF region).
ON THE UP:
In my opinion, Chile and Uruguay are the biggest winners from these two rounds of matches.
Getting four points from a possible total of six, both teams have helped their causes and continue well in contention for a place in the next World Cup (after missing out of Germany).
Brazil, even when some would think they dropped points in Ecuador, escaped with an undeserved point from Quito and had no problems to beat Perú at home to claim second place.
IN THE BUBBLE:
Argentina and Colombia got two easy home wins only to fail dramatically at their next hurdle. For Argentina, the chance of rebounding is bigger and the margin of error too. Colombia can't score for toffee, are currently out of qualification spots and they next visit Buenos Aires.
Paraguay had two difficult away matches. They lost to a fairly solid Uruguayan side at Montevideo, but then they rescued a point in difficult Quito with 10-men against Ecuador to keep their well-earned first place in the standings.
Venezuela looked out of sorts in Buenos Aires but rebounded nicely with a derby win against Colombia. They will need all the luck in the world, but they're in with a realistic shot at making it to their first ever FIFA World Cup.
Bolivia were left with a sweet taste in their mouthes, but 12 total points are still some distance short from looking encouraging. They can build up on their historical win over Argentina but they need to get maximum points from their home matches as well as winning some points away from La Paz.
OUT OF LUCK:
To me Ecuador are the biggest losers of these two matches. At home for both games, they let Brazil escape with a point on Sunday and they repeated the same with Paraguay on Wednesday. Sunday at least had a positive feeling about it because it was Ecuador the one who scored in the dying minutes and it was Brazil. Wednesday was heartbreaking for Ecuador because they conceded so late. Instead of taking a deserved six points, they got only two and they are currently outside qualification places, with only themselves to blame.
Perú are hopeless. Six goals conceded in two matches (1-3 at home to Chile; 0-3 away to Brazil). Only seven points. Last in the standings. Really, there's nothing positive for them to look at at the moment.
Putting the 1-6 into perspective
This 6-1 defeat at Bolivia ranks up there when it comes to the heaviest defeats in the history of our national team.
The most memorable defeat, that humbled our national team that went to the World Cup in Sweden 1958, came against Czechoslovakia. It was the same result as the one on Wednesday in La Paz. 6-1 to the Europeans.
Another one in a World Cup was the heavy 4-0 defeat at the hands of the Clockwork Orange of Holland in 1974.
When it comes to World Cup Qualifiers, this is the first time we concede 6 goals, but we lost by the same margin of 5 goals in 1993 when Colombia beat us 5-0 at home and left us on the brink of missing out on the USA 1994 World Cup. Eventually, Argentina defeated Australia in a playoff series and made it to the World Cup.
Another 5-0 came against Uruguay in 1959 and one year later we lost 5-1 to Brazil.
The most memorable defeat, that humbled our national team that went to the World Cup in Sweden 1958, came against Czechoslovakia. It was the same result as the one on Wednesday in La Paz. 6-1 to the Europeans.
Another one in a World Cup was the heavy 4-0 defeat at the hands of the Clockwork Orange of Holland in 1974.
When it comes to World Cup Qualifiers, this is the first time we concede 6 goals, but we lost by the same margin of 5 goals in 1993 when Colombia beat us 5-0 at home and left us on the brink of missing out on the USA 1994 World Cup. Eventually, Argentina defeated Australia in a playoff series and made it to the World Cup.
Another 5-0 came against Uruguay in 1959 and one year later we lost 5-1 to Brazil.
Bolivia 6-1 Argentina: Lack of altitude from ARG
The quick explanation, the simpler, the easiest, would be to say that Argentina had a bad game, probably safe to say Argentina had a terrible game and Bolivia played an almost flawless match.
It's true. Like it's also true that the altitude played a big part in this terror film.
With all things considered, I would like to ask you to look at the following picture and do as it says: DON'T PANIC, PEOPLE!
Diego said: "Every goal from Bolivia was a dagger to my heart. I can't say much more to our fans. I think any team in the world would have suffered against Bolivia today because they were brilliant. I hope this is a one off and I'm confident we'll come back from this".
Argentina had a poor start and our team failed to find the way to ensure possession and play as far from CARRIZO as possible. Bolivia went ahead, enjoyed a number of goal-scoring chances and hit the bar inside the first 15 minutes.
Just when it looked like Argentina could get something from the game with a lucky break we found when Lucho GONZALEZ scored from distance, reality hit us back.
If I had the chance to turn back the clock, I'll go back in time to the moment when MESSI combined with TEVEZ and got in front of the keeper only to shoot at him and failing to see a wide-open Maxi RODRIGUEZ coming from the right. That would have been 2-1 for Argentina. Even when we clearly weren't playing anywhere near the top of our game.
Instead, a few moments later, CARRIZO couldn't control the ball, ZANETTI then made a school-boy error, lost posession and committed a foul inside the box. 2-1 down.
The definite nail on the coffin came in the last minute of that ugly first half when a perfect counter-attack sent Bolivia 3-1 up.
The rest was history. Everytime a team is forced to chase the result, more goals can come and most like will come instead.
Frustration had the best out of our players, especially DI MARIA, and we were lucky not to lose by more.
The road ahead is still long. Argentina pretty much depend on their own ability and as of right now, we don't need other results to go our way in order to calculate if we can or we can't get to the next World Cup.
I'm a positive person and I'm always looking on the bright side of things. Today, there's not much I can take from this game, but if anything, this is a good experience for Diego and this group of players. I'm confident they will learn a lot from this and they'll be incredibly motivated to shake this loss off when we face Colombia next.
It's true. Like it's also true that the altitude played a big part in this terror film.
With all things considered, I would like to ask you to look at the following picture and do as it says: DON'T PANIC, PEOPLE!
Diego said: "Every goal from Bolivia was a dagger to my heart. I can't say much more to our fans. I think any team in the world would have suffered against Bolivia today because they were brilliant. I hope this is a one off and I'm confident we'll come back from this".Argentina had a poor start and our team failed to find the way to ensure possession and play as far from CARRIZO as possible. Bolivia went ahead, enjoyed a number of goal-scoring chances and hit the bar inside the first 15 minutes.
Just when it looked like Argentina could get something from the game with a lucky break we found when Lucho GONZALEZ scored from distance, reality hit us back.
If I had the chance to turn back the clock, I'll go back in time to the moment when MESSI combined with TEVEZ and got in front of the keeper only to shoot at him and failing to see a wide-open Maxi RODRIGUEZ coming from the right. That would have been 2-1 for Argentina. Even when we clearly weren't playing anywhere near the top of our game.
Instead, a few moments later, CARRIZO couldn't control the ball, ZANETTI then made a school-boy error, lost posession and committed a foul inside the box. 2-1 down.
The definite nail on the coffin came in the last minute of that ugly first half when a perfect counter-attack sent Bolivia 3-1 up.
The rest was history. Everytime a team is forced to chase the result, more goals can come and most like will come instead.
Frustration had the best out of our players, especially DI MARIA, and we were lucky not to lose by more.
The road ahead is still long. Argentina pretty much depend on their own ability and as of right now, we don't need other results to go our way in order to calculate if we can or we can't get to the next World Cup.
I'm a positive person and I'm always looking on the bright side of things. Today, there's not much I can take from this game, but if anything, this is a good experience for Diego and this group of players. I'm confident they will learn a lot from this and they'll be incredibly motivated to shake this loss off when we face Colombia next.
Bolivia 6-1 Argentina: Dave's player ratings
Just like we did for the match against Venezuela, we're publishing Dave's player ratings.
Here's what our man in Albany, New York, has to say about the players' performances from today's disastrous match.
If you're not an Argentina player, you'll enjoy these player ratings even when the grades each and every footballer got is way below sea-level.
Sebastian
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Dave. P:
Wow! Terrible performance all around on everybody’s end. The altitude was definitely a reason why we were tired and did not have enough air in our lungs but still to lose 6-1 with such a skillful and talented team is very unbelievable. That being said I will attempt to
bring up any positives by our players although they are very microscopic if any. We will have to see how Maradona bounces back from this lose and what changes if any he makes to fire up the Albiceleste playing back on normal altitude grounds.
Player Ratings
CARRIZO: 2.5- A little shaky at the beginning of the match but settles in for a couple minutes of the barrage from distance from the Bolivians. The first goal was close range and could do nothing about it. He had some incredible saves from distance but poor reactions from close range, which is not entirely his fault but the defenses. The blunder he had was what unfortunately turned into a PK for Bolivia, and what was he thinking with that attempt to fake out the Bolivian attacker. Also, poor reaction on the last goal that Bolivia scored, not what you would expect from the #1 Argentine goalkeeper. I will not give up on him yet but if he has another poor performance then bring in Romero or Ustari when they are back from injury. Maybe Maradona will bench him in the next games because he probably wont be starting for Lazio either.
ZANETTI: 2- The curious case of Javier was definitely a curious case. He played so well and confident against Venezuela, but today was making every mistake possible. Never made any attacking run, clipped the legs of the player blatantly for the PK, and was last getting back
for two of Bolivia’s goals. If there were any games that showed Zanetti being to old to play, this game was it. Again, I am not jumping ship on Zanetti he has pure talent, is a rock, but he got beat
far to many times today.
DEMICHELIS: 3.5- The best defender on the day which is not saying much at all. Had a few strong challenges and cool calm moves in the back. Was very unlucky that the first goal was scored because of a deflection that fell right into the path of the Bolivian attack. Like Zanetti was late coming back and caught off guard for 2 other of Bolivia’s goals. Seemed to be a bit confused…what happened the Demichelis we saw vs. France.
HEINZE: 2.5- Nothing too ridiculous from Heinze this game, but much like the other defenders was caught flat from the start and seemed confused with how to play defense the entire game. You can’t question his heart though, you could see the passion in his face with everything he was doing and hustled the entire 90 minutes, no reward though. Again like Zanetti and Demi was caught out of position on the ball over the top that put Bolivia up 5-1.
PAPA: 3- Hustle, hustle, hustle. Papa’s work rate is great he is so scrappy and will run up and down the entire pitch the entire game. That being said he was running out of control the majority of this game, he would be up at the opponents box and leave gaps in the back which caused pressure. Should have made the tackle on the player in the box for the first goal that was scored. It will be interesting to see what Maradona does with the defense for the next games. Will he go
back to the 3 man line? There are many defenders that deserve a shot at the NT especially after this result. Gonzalo? Zabaleta? Garay? Monzon? I’ll leave it at that
Maxi RODRIGUEZ: 2.5- Not much to say for Maxi this game. Did get involved with some good runs in the beginning of the game. Did nothing to help out defensively and was really quiet, much like all of our midfield. Did have a few attempts at distributing up to Tevez and Messi but was late on all attempts. Did not play well with the Bolivian’s pressuring him with every touch.
MASCHERANO: 2- Really? Come on Mascherano...Our usual heart and soul of the Albiceleste did absolutely nothing at all today. No hustle back tracking runs to disrupt the opponent’s attack, no helping the back 4 with defense, which he did so well for the back 3 against Venezuela.
It was almost like he was not even on the field. He gave the Bolivians way too much space to attempt all those long-range shots at Carrizo all game. I was sitting hear waiting for the team to be like okay they are taking long shots lets step up to stop this, and it never happened. Poor play by Javier. Also, all his passes were off today as well…I don’t want to sound like it’s the end of the world, because its not at all we just need to take a long break and think and learn from what happened today. I feel that this result will make us a stronger and more aware team in the future.
GAGO: 3.5- Player of the game if we are even aloud to have one after this performance. Was a little sloppy on the ball at times but also showed pure class touches and control. You could see he was trying so hard with everything he did, it just was not working out or was unlucky. Of all the players on the team he was the one that was most involved. Everyone on the team was sitting back and never even seemed like they wanted to attack. Gago would win the ball and push it up
field looking to distribute to Messi n Tevez. Good play by Gago just unlucky that no one else on our team felt like playing hard today.
Lucho GONZALEZ: 2- Should be a 1 but he did score a goal, a lucky goal, but a goal none the less. Very poor play by Lucho today, seemed like he was lost out there on the wing, was always in bad defensive position; sometimes he wasn’t even in any position. In the beginning of the game Bolivia were taking advantage of his side because they knew he does not know how to defend. Many chances were created because the majority of the time Lucho was just walking back and letting players go by him.
The altitude was definitely effecting him the most out of all players, but if it is let the coach know and make a change so that you don’t become a detriment to the team.
TEVEZ: 3- The altitude and the Bolivian pressure was too much for Carlitos today. He did show his immense amount of heart and work rate just to no avail today. Had a few good combinations with Messi that allowed Messi to have 1on1’s with the goalie. When he did combine with Messi it was good combination, but this was only 3 or 4 times all game because we were on our heels the entire game.
MESSI: 2.5- Again Messi is truly a special player, however, today nothing was working for him. He touched the ball a lot less then Tevez and it seemed like he was not coming to the ball at all today, like he didn’t want it. When he combined with Tevez it was good to see that, however both times he got in on the goalie he either went for a chip, when the low shot was the proper choice, or favored his left foot like he always does when the right foot would have had the angle to score.
Not a good performance by Messi today, not a good performance by the entire team today. Hopefully Maradona will turn this around in the next round of qualifiers and make changes that are needed to better our team to seal a qualification spot to South Africa.
Substitutes
DI MARIA: 0- Came on for Maxi in the 56th minute, and was a little spark for us as he added quick pace to the game and even attempted to shoot on the keeper from distance which no one was doing. Then the child and lack of experience came out in Di Maria. The blatant kick of the legs of the Bolivian defender. For this he got a straight red card because he also mocked the referee by putting his hand up like a ref does when they book someone. Very very poor decision, the frustration settled and got the best of Di Maria in less then 10 minutes. He has the talent, but after that decision who knows if he will be called back up.
ANGELERI: N/A
MONTENEGRO: N/A
Again I don’t want to make it seem like it’s the end of the world because it’s not. But this performance was weak especially coming off of the 4-0 win. They all knew that it was going to be in the high altitude, and we are technically, physically, and skillfully far better then Bolivia. It’s a sad day for me, as it is for all us Albiceleste followers to see us fall 6-1. But we will regroup and
Maradona will most likely make some changes for the next games and then we will see what we are really made of.
Here's what our man in Albany, New York, has to say about the players' performances from today's disastrous match.
If you're not an Argentina player, you'll enjoy these player ratings even when the grades each and every footballer got is way below sea-level.
Sebastian
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dave. P:
Wow! Terrible performance all around on everybody’s end. The altitude was definitely a reason why we were tired and did not have enough air in our lungs but still to lose 6-1 with such a skillful and talented team is very unbelievable. That being said I will attempt to
bring up any positives by our players although they are very microscopic if any. We will have to see how Maradona bounces back from this lose and what changes if any he makes to fire up the Albiceleste playing back on normal altitude grounds.
Player Ratings
CARRIZO: 2.5- A little shaky at the beginning of the match but settles in for a couple minutes of the barrage from distance from the Bolivians. The first goal was close range and could do nothing about it. He had some incredible saves from distance but poor reactions from close range, which is not entirely his fault but the defenses. The blunder he had was what unfortunately turned into a PK for Bolivia, and what was he thinking with that attempt to fake out the Bolivian attacker. Also, poor reaction on the last goal that Bolivia scored, not what you would expect from the #1 Argentine goalkeeper. I will not give up on him yet but if he has another poor performance then bring in Romero or Ustari when they are back from injury. Maybe Maradona will bench him in the next games because he probably wont be starting for Lazio either.
ZANETTI: 2- The curious case of Javier was definitely a curious case. He played so well and confident against Venezuela, but today was making every mistake possible. Never made any attacking run, clipped the legs of the player blatantly for the PK, and was last getting back
for two of Bolivia’s goals. If there were any games that showed Zanetti being to old to play, this game was it. Again, I am not jumping ship on Zanetti he has pure talent, is a rock, but he got beat
far to many times today.
DEMICHELIS: 3.5- The best defender on the day which is not saying much at all. Had a few strong challenges and cool calm moves in the back. Was very unlucky that the first goal was scored because of a deflection that fell right into the path of the Bolivian attack. Like Zanetti was late coming back and caught off guard for 2 other of Bolivia’s goals. Seemed to be a bit confused…what happened the Demichelis we saw vs. France.
HEINZE: 2.5- Nothing too ridiculous from Heinze this game, but much like the other defenders was caught flat from the start and seemed confused with how to play defense the entire game. You can’t question his heart though, you could see the passion in his face with everything he was doing and hustled the entire 90 minutes, no reward though. Again like Zanetti and Demi was caught out of position on the ball over the top that put Bolivia up 5-1.
PAPA: 3- Hustle, hustle, hustle. Papa’s work rate is great he is so scrappy and will run up and down the entire pitch the entire game. That being said he was running out of control the majority of this game, he would be up at the opponents box and leave gaps in the back which caused pressure. Should have made the tackle on the player in the box for the first goal that was scored. It will be interesting to see what Maradona does with the defense for the next games. Will he go
back to the 3 man line? There are many defenders that deserve a shot at the NT especially after this result. Gonzalo? Zabaleta? Garay? Monzon? I’ll leave it at that
Maxi RODRIGUEZ: 2.5- Not much to say for Maxi this game. Did get involved with some good runs in the beginning of the game. Did nothing to help out defensively and was really quiet, much like all of our midfield. Did have a few attempts at distributing up to Tevez and Messi but was late on all attempts. Did not play well with the Bolivian’s pressuring him with every touch.
MASCHERANO: 2- Really? Come on Mascherano...Our usual heart and soul of the Albiceleste did absolutely nothing at all today. No hustle back tracking runs to disrupt the opponent’s attack, no helping the back 4 with defense, which he did so well for the back 3 against Venezuela.
It was almost like he was not even on the field. He gave the Bolivians way too much space to attempt all those long-range shots at Carrizo all game. I was sitting hear waiting for the team to be like okay they are taking long shots lets step up to stop this, and it never happened. Poor play by Javier. Also, all his passes were off today as well…I don’t want to sound like it’s the end of the world, because its not at all we just need to take a long break and think and learn from what happened today. I feel that this result will make us a stronger and more aware team in the future.
GAGO: 3.5- Player of the game if we are even aloud to have one after this performance. Was a little sloppy on the ball at times but also showed pure class touches and control. You could see he was trying so hard with everything he did, it just was not working out or was unlucky. Of all the players on the team he was the one that was most involved. Everyone on the team was sitting back and never even seemed like they wanted to attack. Gago would win the ball and push it up
field looking to distribute to Messi n Tevez. Good play by Gago just unlucky that no one else on our team felt like playing hard today.
Lucho GONZALEZ: 2- Should be a 1 but he did score a goal, a lucky goal, but a goal none the less. Very poor play by Lucho today, seemed like he was lost out there on the wing, was always in bad defensive position; sometimes he wasn’t even in any position. In the beginning of the game Bolivia were taking advantage of his side because they knew he does not know how to defend. Many chances were created because the majority of the time Lucho was just walking back and letting players go by him.
The altitude was definitely effecting him the most out of all players, but if it is let the coach know and make a change so that you don’t become a detriment to the team.
TEVEZ: 3- The altitude and the Bolivian pressure was too much for Carlitos today. He did show his immense amount of heart and work rate just to no avail today. Had a few good combinations with Messi that allowed Messi to have 1on1’s with the goalie. When he did combine with Messi it was good combination, but this was only 3 or 4 times all game because we were on our heels the entire game.
MESSI: 2.5- Again Messi is truly a special player, however, today nothing was working for him. He touched the ball a lot less then Tevez and it seemed like he was not coming to the ball at all today, like he didn’t want it. When he combined with Tevez it was good to see that, however both times he got in on the goalie he either went for a chip, when the low shot was the proper choice, or favored his left foot like he always does when the right foot would have had the angle to score.
Not a good performance by Messi today, not a good performance by the entire team today. Hopefully Maradona will turn this around in the next round of qualifiers and make changes that are needed to better our team to seal a qualification spot to South Africa.
Substitutes
DI MARIA: 0- Came on for Maxi in the 56th minute, and was a little spark for us as he added quick pace to the game and even attempted to shoot on the keeper from distance which no one was doing. Then the child and lack of experience came out in Di Maria. The blatant kick of the legs of the Bolivian defender. For this he got a straight red card because he also mocked the referee by putting his hand up like a ref does when they book someone. Very very poor decision, the frustration settled and got the best of Di Maria in less then 10 minutes. He has the talent, but after that decision who knows if he will be called back up.
ANGELERI: N/A
MONTENEGRO: N/A
Again I don’t want to make it seem like it’s the end of the world because it’s not. But this performance was weak especially coming off of the 4-0 win. They all knew that it was going to be in the high altitude, and we are technically, physically, and skillfully far better then Bolivia. It’s a sad day for me, as it is for all us Albiceleste followers to see us fall 6-1. But we will regroup and
Maradona will most likely make some changes for the next games and then we will see what we are really made of.
How to follow the match online and kick-off times
I've noticed that sometimes it's difficult to find out when a certain match will start and what time will it be in your part of the world.
Also, a lot of people don't know that they can actually WATCH the match online without having to pay and without doing anything against the law.
Here are some guidelines for you to be able to watch Argentina at Bolivia and to know when to set up your alarm so you don't miss the start of the match.
First thing first. Check your local time.
I'll help you by listing the local time for some major cities in different parts of the world.
The match will start at 3:30 PM local time in La Paz.
That's 4:30 PM Buenos Aires.
3:30 PM New York (and the whole Eastern coast of the USA).
8:30 PM London
9:30 PM Paris/Rome/Madrid
3:30 AM on Thursday for Beijing.
For more and to find out exactly what time will be in your city when the match kicks off, visit this website:
World Time Server.
To watch it?
The easiest way is to visit this link:
Bolivia v. Argentina.
No need to download a software or anything.
Other options (software download required):
MYP2P.
Roja Directa. (Scroll down until you find the link to the match)
Then of course you can chat with us and other fans during the match.
Not long before the match starts, but you still have time to listen to our podcast show.
Right-click on the following link and save it as an MP3 file or listen to it in your computer: Mundo Albiceleste's Podcast.
Also, a lot of people don't know that they can actually WATCH the match online without having to pay and without doing anything against the law.
Here are some guidelines for you to be able to watch Argentina at Bolivia and to know when to set up your alarm so you don't miss the start of the match.
First thing first. Check your local time.
I'll help you by listing the local time for some major cities in different parts of the world.
The match will start at 3:30 PM local time in La Paz.
That's 4:30 PM Buenos Aires.
3:30 PM New York (and the whole Eastern coast of the USA).
8:30 PM London
9:30 PM Paris/Rome/Madrid
3:30 AM on Thursday for Beijing.
For more and to find out exactly what time will be in your city when the match kicks off, visit this website:
World Time Server.
To watch it?
The easiest way is to visit this link:
Bolivia v. Argentina.
No need to download a software or anything.
Other options (software download required):
MYP2P.
Roja Directa. (Scroll down until you find the link to the match)
Then of course you can chat with us and other fans during the match.
Not long before the match starts, but you still have time to listen to our podcast show.
Right-click on the following link and save it as an MP3 file or listen to it in your computer: Mundo Albiceleste's Podcast.
BREAKING NEWS: MESSI to miss Bolivia clash
News coming out of Argentina in the last few hours is that Lionel MESSI tweaked his ankle during training due to a challenge by Gabriel HEINZE. It is being reported that he had to be taken off by a stretcher and will not compete in the World Cup Qualifier against Bolivia.
Diego MARADONA has yet to comment on the injury. It is being rumored that Carlos TEVEZ will replace Lionel MESSI and Lisandro LOPEZ will partner him up front.
More news on this as it develops... oh and Happy April Fools day!
Diego MARADONA has yet to comment on the injury. It is being rumored that Carlos TEVEZ will replace Lionel MESSI and Lisandro LOPEZ will partner him up front.
More news on this as it develops... oh and Happy April Fools day!
NBA News – Losing End Despite High Performance From Manu & Chapu
Despite of another great game from Manu GINOBILI on his comeback trail, San Antonio Spurs looks to be in trouble of losing that No.2 position in the West after suffering their second successive defeat against the Oklahoma City Thunders. They will now play five games from their last eight on the road.
This was Manu first start since December and he was on eager to put the defeat against Hornets just a fortnight behind. He came up with 17 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists this time.
“The last couple of weeks have not been very good for us,” Manu said. “We consider ourselves an experienced and tough team, so we’ve got to stay together and step up now.”
Fabricio OBERTO, who sat out the previous two games because of an irregular heartbeat, was cleared to play but remained inactive. The team said OBERTO will have daily heart tests for the rest of the season.After upsetting the Suns in their last game, Sacramento Kings came out with another spirited performance in tonight’s game against the New Orleans Hornets. They gave one of the leading teams from the West enough scare and probably the rest of the league enough reasons to be concern about their potential next season. This was Chapu NOCIONI best ever game in a Kings jersey posting 23 points, 6 rebounds plus an assist and a steal.
MUNDO ALBICELESTE's PODCAST:
Don't forget to listen to the second edition of our show: download
This was Manu first start since December and he was on eager to put the defeat against Hornets just a fortnight behind. He came up with 17 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists this time.
“The last couple of weeks have not been very good for us,” Manu said. “We consider ourselves an experienced and tough team, so we’ve got to stay together and step up now.”
Fabricio OBERTO, who sat out the previous two games because of an irregular heartbeat, was cleared to play but remained inactive. The team said OBERTO will have daily heart tests for the rest of the season.After upsetting the Suns in their last game, Sacramento Kings came out with another spirited performance in tonight’s game against the New Orleans Hornets. They gave one of the leading teams from the West enough scare and probably the rest of the league enough reasons to be concern about their potential next season. This was Chapu NOCIONI best ever game in a Kings jersey posting 23 points, 6 rebounds plus an assist and a steal.
MUNDO ALBICELESTE's PODCAST:
Don't forget to listen to the second edition of our show: download
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