Miami (special envoy).- Argentina no longer plays like the best in the world, but it can still be the best in this World Cup. It will achieve this if it takes note of the very weak match it played against Cape Verde, one of the most lackluster performances of Lionel Scaloni’s tenure, which revealed a deeper problem than performance or suffering to advance in the round.
The most worrying thing was that, for the first time, this team conveyed the feeling of losing its identity. It once again depended almost exclusively on Lionel Messi, both for goals and for set-piece execution, when for years it built its success on a collective functioning that enhanced the stars instead of needing them to rescue it. That was, in addition to the hallmark of this national team, the idea that made it world champion and even ended up influencing the way many other teams play.
The good news is that the blow came in time and with a victory. The bad news is that Scaloni now has only three days to recover that version before the clash with Egypt.
It is not enough to look at the names. The problem also lies in how the team is playing, although several players who were decisive during this process remain well below the level they once showed, especially in a midfield where Argentina’s main problems seem to be concentrated today. Added to this is a defense that has lost solidity and individual performances that force Scaloni to reconsider some starting spots. Anyone can have a bad game. The ideal is not to have one in a World Cup, much less at this stage. But Argentina’s situation no longer seems like an isolated episode.
So far, it has strung together discreet performances that were overshadowed by Lionel Messi’s brilliant ability to, at 39 years old, continue leading the scoring charts and appear when he is most needed. Among the powerhouses, Argentina had the best luck in the draws: it got an accessible group on paper, with rivals below 25th place in the FIFA ranking, and faced in the round of 32 one of the five worst-placed teams among the 48 participants, a team that had the merit of finishing second in a group with Spain and Uruguay, against whom it did not lose, but which had also been one of those that received the most shots on goal in the tournament.
Argentina came up against an improved version of Cape Verde, which, with little to lose, dared to attack and caused problems for a team that arrived at the World Cup as a contender. But Argentina’s main challenge seems to be at home. Because later on, higher-quality teams and figures of another caliber will appear. In Qatar, Scaloni decided to change after the defeat against Saudi Arabia and a very tight match against Mexico. Now the margin for error is much smaller, because a performance like Friday’s could leave Argentina out of the World Cup. But this same coaching staff has already gone through similar situations and has always known how to readjust the team. That is why there are still reasons to believe that Argentina can once again resemble the team it was for much of this period.
In public, Scaloni avoided dramatizing the situation. He even got annoyed with a journalist’s question asking if the responsibility of the match had weighed on Argentina. He praised the team’s attitude in overcoming adversity and fighting until the end, a strength that the team maintains intact, although he is also aware that it needs much more than character. The dilemma is how much to change with the tournament underway and how much to maintain a structure that, although it does not work as before today, has proven for years that it knows how to compete. «The match was very tough and you always have to take the positive. This team never gives up. We deserved to win, but that does not take away that the opponent made things difficult for us. I will discuss the negatives with the players,» the coach said.
Messi, on the other hand, conveyed a different message. «There is a lot to correct. We did the hardest part: finding the first goal, and we thought that with that we would be able to find our game and be calmer, and it was the opposite. We lost the ball, we dropped back, and we couldn’t press well. This World Cup shows you that everything is very even, very complicated, all matches are going to be very difficult,» he assumed, with a diagnosis that also pointed out specific deficits in the game.
Argentina will have only three practices before the match against Egypt, which also played extra time and had to resort to penalties to eliminate Australia. It trained this Saturday in Miami, without too much intensity for those who played the most, will repeat on Sunday, and will have a final rehearsal in Atlanta. Although the idea has been worked on for years, there is little time to change too much.
The match against Cape Verde once again raised questions about some positions, and Scaloni will have to decide whether to keep the base or move some pieces. The test of Alexis Mac Allister as a central midfielder did not work as expected. The Liverpool midfielder has become a role player over time, diligent in his movements, but away from the area he lost some of his ability to break lines. Leandro Paredes seems to offer better conditions for that position, even with Mac Allister in the team, but in a different role. At right-back, neither Nahuel Molina nor Gonzalo Montiel convey much security, while up front, Thiago Almada went from better to worse and ended up participating little. The center-forward position also does not provide certainties: Argentina arrived at the World Cup with the Serie A top scorer and one of the main figures of the Spanish league as options, but today neither is in their best moment.
For Scaloni, the time to review some decisions came later than in Qatar, although earlier than expected. In that World Cup, the team also shaped itself through the matches until reaching, probably, its best collective version in decades. It lost on debut against Saudi Arabia, went to extra time against Australia, and penalties against the Netherlands and France. None of that prevented it from lifting the cup in the end.
The victory against Cape Verde brought the tranquility of qualification, but also exposed problems that results had managed to hide until now. Argentina is still in the race, with a squad prepared to face anyone and a coach who has already shown he knows how to rebuild teams during competition. The best version of the national team has not yet appeared in this World Cup. The encouraging fact is that this team has experience in finding it when it needs it most.
Watch the 2026 World Cup in the best quality
These are the most sought-after TVs to watch the National Team. All with 12 interest-free installments:
- Smart TV Kanji 32″ LED HD – From $120,000 in 12 interest-free installments (VAFTS9-89J3)
- Smart TV LG 43″ 4K UHD WebOS – From $450,000 in 12 interest-free installments (VAFTS9-WXW9)
- Smart TV Samsung 50″ 4K UHD – From $600,000 in 12 interest-free installments (VAFTS9-VVE0)
Approximate prices. 12 interest-free installments subject to each seller. Look for the codes on Mercado Libre.
che para mi la seleccion es de los pibes del barrio no de los mercenarios de la afa scaloni un fantasma messi no banco mas esto es un desastre vienen los yanquis a robarnos el futbol pero nosotros resistimos si pierden la identidad que se vayan todos a casa aguante el potrero y los pibes de la villa
para mi esta seleccion es una verguenza total dependen de messi y no tienen huevos en el medio scaloni no sabe armar un equipo puro verso si en 3 dias no enderezan esto nos vamos a casa en cuartos vuelvan a la garra argentina carajo firmado el tano pasman