More fútbol argentino than you can shake a mullet at
How can I sum all that up? First, as a World Cup fan: Qatar 2022 is finally over, but I hope (and believe) that the unpeeling of all the layers of the onion of human rights abuses that have surrounded it aren't done yet. I doubt the bidding process for 2026 was any less iffy... Continue Reading →
It's been a good long while since I last posted here, but after so many years waiting to write that headline I had to write something. Argentina ended a 28-year wait for a trophy at full international level on Saturday night, and did it in the manner every Argentine fan had dreamed of: in the... Continue Reading →
For the sixth time in a row, the final of the Copa América will feature an Argentine manager. Marcelo Bielsa in 2004 and Alfio Basile in 2007 took their homeland to defeats against Brazil, Gerardo Martino was involved for Paraguay in 2011 and Argentina in both 2015 and 2016, and in the latter two, the... Continue Reading →
The most frustrating thing about the fact that Argentina have had The Wrong Manager for the last two and a half years is that they never had to lose the right one in the first place. As winter moved towards spring of 2016 down here in the southern hemisphere, Gerardo Martino – frustrated at club... Continue Reading →
Argentina take on Venezuela in Madrid on Friday evening, with Lionel Messi returning to the national side for the first time since they were eliminated at the hands of France in last year's World Cup. The starting XI will feature no fewer than three Martínezes: Defensa y Justicia defender Lisandro, Atlanta United playmaker Gonzalo (replacing... Continue Reading →
The twenty-second round of Superliga action ended on Monday night with yet another late winner for Defensa y Justicia, who emerged victorious from a five-goal thriller against Banfield thanks to Nicolás Fernández's hat trick. The win meant that Defensa have qualified for the Copa Libertadores for the first time in their history – they'll be in... Continue Reading →
Argentina's five Copa Libertadores group stage representatives all started their qualification efforts this week – and all with rather frustrating results. There were goalless draws all round on Tuesday: Godoy Cruz got a creditable one at home to Olimpia of Paraguay, San Lorenzo visited Melgar of Peru, where both teams absolutely stank the place out,... Continue Reading →
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni announced his latest squad on Thursday, ahead of two friendlies which act as warm ups for the Copa América in Brazil in a few months' time. The headline news is that Lionel Messi's break from international football is coming to an end: some outlets had reported earlier in the week that... Continue Reading →
Alianza Lima v River Plate (Wednesday, 19:30 local time/EST, 21:30 ART, 00:30 Thursday GMT) The euphoria of the epic extra-time victory at ‘home’ in the Bernabéu back in December is gone if certainly not forgotten, given the identity of their opponents in that match, for River Plate. The hard work of defending their Copa Libertadores... Continue Reading →
Jorge Wilstermann v Boca Juniors (Tuesday, 20:30 Cochabamba, 21:30 ART, 19:30 EST, 00:30 Weds GMT) Last year’s Copa Libertadores runners up Boca Juniors begin their quest to go one better on Tuesday night as the group stage of the 2019 competition gets underway. Boca are visiting Cochabamba, Bolivia, to take on Jorge Wilstermann, and readers... Continue Reading →
Hasta El Gol Siempre 