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 →
International friendly: Argentina v Venezuela formations
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 →
Messi back as Lionel Scaloni names Argentina squad to face Venezuela and Morocco
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 →
Did we learn anything from Argentina v Haiti?
On Tuesday, Argentina continued their recent trend of bidding a pre-World Cup farewell to their fans with a friendly against opponents who, with no disrespect to Haiti, or to Canada in 2010 or Trinidad and Tobago in 2014, are not quite on the level of the opponents they'll face in the tournament. Did we learn... Continue Reading →
Argentina’s 2018 World Cup squad announced: Icardi won’t travel, but Dybala will
After months of speculation, Jorge Sampaoli announced Argentina's final 23-man squad for the 2018 World Cup at lunchtime on Monday. As expected, there was no place for Mauro Icardi, who Sampaoli is said to feel struggled to integrate with the rest of the group, and who was disappointing when called up for Argentina last year.... Continue Reading →
Talking to Lionel Messi’s youth coach ahead of the Copa América Centenario
In April, I headed up from Buenos Aires to Rosario, Lionel Messi's hometown, for a feature for ESPNFC ahead of the Copa América Centenario. Whilst there, I talked to Ernesto Vecchio, the youth coach who oversaw Lionel Messi's childhood development for longer than anyone before Messi moved to Barcelona, and to Nicolás Canessa, an occasional team-mate of... Continue Reading →
Weekly opinion: does Messi’s fifth Ballon d’Or make him the best ever?
In my latest weekly opinion piece for The Bubble, I predictably took a look at Lionel Messi, who won the Ballon d'Or for the World Player of the Year for the fifth time on Monday. Individual awards are a bit daft in a team sport though, in my opinion, so rather than the achievement of winning the... Continue Reading →
Argentine football in 2015: a review
2015 has just hours left to run (in Argentina that is; happy new year if it's already gone where you are), and the folk at The Bubble have asked me to take a look back on the last twelve months in Argentine football, as part of their Year In Review series. Here are my key moments... Continue Reading →
Weekly opinion: River Plate’s Club World Cup semi-final win
River Plate secured their place in the Club World Cup final about twelve hours ago, with a 1-0 win over Sanfrecce Hiroshima in Osaka. It was nervy in spite of them largely having the better of play (but not the best chances) throughout, and in my latest column for The Bubble I discuss why those nerves... Continue Reading →
Copa América 2015: two previews
The 2015 Copa América in Chile is just hours away, and here, as the title of this post suggests, are two previews. First, a link to a piece I wrote for ESPNFC examining whether Lionel Messi needs to win this tournament in order to secure his legacy, and secondly, episode 188 of Hand Of Pod, which looks... Continue Reading →
Hasta El Gol Siempre 