Argentina National Team World Cup Betting
Lionel Messi might be taking part in his last World Cup. The greatest player of his generation will turn 35 this June, so this is likely his last chance to lead Argentina to its third World Cup title. Messi finally led Argentina to glory at the Copa America last summer, and the national team is hoping to build off that performance after not losing a match in World Cup qualifying.
Manager: Lionel Scaloni
Nickname: La Albiceleste
Confederation: CONMEBOL (South America)
FIFA Ranking: 4 (March 2022)
Argentina World Cup Betting Odds
To Win Group C: -250
To Win 2022 World Cup: +950
*Odds as of May 4, 2022
Argentina Group Stage Schedule
Argentina vs. Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, November 22, 2022, 5 a.m. ET, at Lusail Iconic Stadium in Lusail (FS1)
Argentina vs. Mexico, Saturday, November 26, 2022, 2 p.m. ET, at Lusail Iconic Stadium in Lusail (FS1)
Poland vs. Argentina, Wednesday, November 30, 2022, 2 p.m. ET, at Stadium 974 in Doha (FOX)
History at the World Cup
Appearances: 17 (first in 1930)
Best Result: Champions (1978, 1986)
Argentina has been incredibly successful at the World Cup. La Albiceleste doesn’t boast as many World Cup titles as rival Brazil, but the Argentines have made it to the World Cup finals five times in their history.
The inaugural World Cup in 1930 saw Argentina finish runner-up to hosts Uruguay. The Argentines blasted Mexico and Chile in the Group Stage, and they hammered the United States 6-1 in the semifinals. They took a 2-1 lead into the second half against Uruguay in the finals, but they allowed three goals in the second half to lose 4-2.
We didn’t see Argentina take part in a World Cup for 24 years due to various issues. They suffered their worst performance ever at the 1958 World Cup and largely struggled on the international stage until they hosted the 1978 World Cup.
Mario Kempes won the Golden Boot and Golden Ball, and Argentina beat Peru 6-0 in the Second Group Stage to make the final. They faced the Netherlands in the finals and bested the Dutch 3-1 in added time to claim their first World Cup.
The 1986 World Cup established Diego Maradona as the greatest player in the world. Maradona scored the Goal of the Century against England in the quarterfinals and won the Golden Ball as the best player at the competition. He notched a brace against Belgium in the semifinals too before Argentina knocked off West Germany in the finals.
Maradona helped lead Argentina to the finals of the 1990 World Cup, where they lost to West Germany. He was named to the All-Star Team though along with goalkeeper Sergio Goycochea.
Argentina has made it to the knockout rounds in eight of its last nine World Cup appearances. They have only made it to the semifinals once since 1990 though. That came in 2014 when Argentina bested Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands thanks to a great defense before losing to Germany 1-0 in added time in the final.
What to Watch
Lionel Messi may have surpassed Maradona as the greatest player in the history of Argentina. The only glaring omission on Messi’s resume is the absence of a World Cup title. Messi has the most caps (160) in Argentina history and the most goals (81), and he has won the Ballon d’Or seven times in his professional career. He won the Golden Ball at the 2021 Copa America and was tied with Luis Diaz as the leading scorer in the tournament.
Goalkeeping has been an issue for Argentina in the past, but Emiliano Martinez was superb last summer in Brazil. Martinez won the Golden Glove, and he is likely going to be the first-choice goalkeeper this winter in Qatar.
Angel Di Maria is the leader in the midfield although he is 34 years old. That means we could see more from Leandro Paredes or Giovani Lo Celso in this competition. Lautaro Martinez and Paulo Dybala are hoping to take their games to the next level too.
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