Armed with arguably the best collection of talent in the entire tournament, Argentina is coming hard for that Copa America crown. And as it just so happens, their 2016 Copa America Centenario campaign begins with a rematch against the team that beat them in last year’s tournament final, defending champions Chile. But with superstar striker Lionel Messi not starting, can La Roja hand a shock loss to the tournament favorites?
Get the lowdown on this titanic Group D battle with our preview below. Meanwhile, check out our preview of Group D’s other matchup, Panama vs. Bolivia.
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The names Argentina can call upon in attack for this tournament are simply stunning. They have so much depth and quality that Messi – only the best player in the world, perhaps ever – not starting the tournament opener might not be that big a deal.
Messi injured his back in a recent tune-up match against Honduras. He’s back in training, but he will not start against Chile, according to reports. Lavezzi and Javier Pastore, meanwhile, are slight doubts as they recover from their respective injuries.
But with Aguero, Di Maria and Higuain, the Argentines still have more than enough firepower to get their revenge on the defending champions. The three combined for seven goals in Argentina’s run to the Copa America final last year, but they lost on penalties to Chile.
That match was the only time in their last four meetings where Argentina failed to win against Chile. They had won the previous three, with Higuain scoring four goals. Higuain is coming off an incredible season with Napoli and finished as Serie A’s leading scorer with 36 goals.
Argentina also won their most recent meeting against Chile, a 2018 World Cup qualifying match away from home last March. It was their first match against new Chile manager Juan Antonio Pizzi.
Betting on Chile
This Chile team will be different from the one that won last year’s Copa America. Jorge Sampaoli, who also led them to the 2014 World Cup quarterfinals, resigned as manager in January, taking his very successful high-pressing system with him.
In steps new boss Pizzi, who has not adopted that style which Sampaoli and Marcelo Bielsa implemented with great success for La Roja. Pizzi has yet to completely establish his own style, and his reign has consequently begun rather poorly. They’ve won just once in four matches, and lost both Copa America tune-up matches to Jamaica and Mexico.
However, the extremely talented core group which won the Copa America on home soil last year is still very much intact. World-class stars Arturo Vidal and Alexis Sanchez will continue to lead the way in the US, along with excellent goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, Charles Aranguiz and Eduardo Vargas (co-leading scorer in last year’s Copa with four goals).
They may be currently in transition in terms of tactics, but expect La Roja’s trademark fire and aggression to shine through as they fight tooth and nail against a dangerous Argentina side.
Writer’s Prediction
Even without Messi, Argentina (-111) records a 2-0 opening game win.
