I agree about Aimar – Messi still seems to always want to beat a man, which is not always the best option when playing between the midfield and the forward line, whereas Aimar knows the position and on form plays it about as well as anyone. His club career seems to be affecting his International chances at the moment though, eh?

I’ve published this now, as you were typing the comment, along with the probable Brazil XI.

And David, I know what Riquelme does, but against Germany he was nowhere near as instrumental as in the previous matches, and Argentina were getting pushed back because of it. It’s unfair to single him out on his own because the whole team lost track of Pekerman’s scheme a bit during the Mexico match, but Riquelme’s passing wasn’t the same against Germany as it had been against Cote d’Ivoire and Serbia & Montenegro in the groups.

For what it’s worth, I thought Aimar would’ve been a better replacement for him than Messi that night, but regardless whether anyone agrees with me or not on that count, I don’t think too many people would argue against Cambiasso’s introduction being A Bad Idea (and I do like Cambiasso)…

Abbondanzieri; Burdisso, Coloccini, Heinze; Zanetti, Mascherano, Gago, Jonás Gutiérrez; Riquelme; Messi and Cruz.

I still ask myself what is Cruz doing there?

Messi, for all his undoubted genius, doesn’t quite dominate games the way Riquelme can. But he terrifies defences, and if Riquelme is still not quite fully fit, then he should start instead.