07/02/2021 1:14 PM
Clarín.com
sports
Updated 07/03/2021 15:04
After a historic 2020, in which they achieved the runner-up in the
Three Nations
and that unforgettable first victory against the All Blacks, Los Pumas will raise the curtain on the 2021 season this Saturday at the
Arco del Triunfo
stadium
in Bucharest.
In the first game of the July window,
Romania
will face them
, an inferior rival on paper, but who, according to coach Mario Ledesma, is a "tough and brave" team that will not be easy to break.
The game is already being played and televised by ESPN.
In the previous one, the Argentine national team recalled Pochola Silva, former player and coach of Los Pumas, who died of coronavirus at the age of 75,
"The foundations of Romanian rugby, like many teams in the east, are physical strength and combativeness. They are very brave teams, they really like physical challenge, so that's what we expect. You don't have to be a fortune teller to know that we are going to come and fight at the meeting point, trying to slow down the balls. That was one of the focuses of the work we did that week, "the Argentine coach analyzed.
The match will be the first as captain of
Julián Montoya
, who inherited Pablo Matera's band (also a starter in Bucharest).
In addition, it will mark the return of
Facundo Gigena
, who returns to the team after five years, and
Matías Moroni
and
Tomás Lavanini
, who had played their last game at the 2019 World Cup in Japan, almost two seasons ago.
First challenge of the year for Los Pumas! 💪 And they will be the protagonists who will take to the field today against Romania.
⏰ 15:00
📺 ESPN
Where are you going to encourage us?
#VamosLosPumas 🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/dRktS1vuhD
- Los Pumas (@lospumas) July 3, 2021
Argentina and Romania met eight times in the past, all with the triumph of the blue and white.
The last meeting they played in Bucharest was in 1992, with a victory by 21 to 18. Meanwhile, ten years ago they met for the last time, in a group stage duel of the
New Zealand World Cup 2011
, in Invercargill, that Los Pumas they won by 48 to 3.
The statistics invite you to be excited about a successful start to the year.
Although Ledesma himself warned that the objectives for this game - like the other two that will play in the lead, against Wales, on July 10 and 17 in Cardiff - go the other way.
The idea is, then, that both the players and the coaching staff "put themselves on the same page", as Ledesma told Clarín shortly before traveling to Europe, thinking above all about the great challenge of this 2021 for the team, the Rugby Championship, which kicks off on August 14.
The last game that Los Pumas played was on December 5 of last year, in their last presentation in the Three Nations, in which they tied 16 to 16 with Australia, to secure second place in the tournament behind New Zealand.
Three weeks earlier, on November 14, they had achieved their only victory in the contest, that historic 25-15 against the mighty All Blacks in Sydney, which was the first celebration in history against the black jersey team.
Beyond the fact that the year closed in the midst of the controversy over the scandal generated by the old racist tweets of three players, among them Matera; From the sporting point of view, the team closed 2020 with a positive balance. Now you will have the challenge of extending the good time in this new season. And Romania will be the first test.