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8 mins ago
Messi vs.
Modric: the cracks of Argentina and Croatia, face to face
Lionel Messi and Luka Modric are, without a doubt, the great figures of Argentina and Croatia, who meet this Tuesday in one of the semifinals of the World Cup in Qatar.
And the two have something in common: despite being "veterans" (Messi is 35 years old and Modric, 37), they are showing more validity than ever in the tournament.
Messi is looking for the only title that is missing from his legendary career, in what will surely (as he himself stated some time ago) be his last World Cup.
And he is playing with that goal in mind.
Modric, for his part, is looking for revenge for what happened in Russia 2018, when Croatia fell in the final against France.
Look here the statistics of Messi and Modric so far in the World Cup in Qatar.
17 mins ago
This is how Argentina and Croatia arrive at the semifinal duel
Argentina and Croatia will reissue this Tuesday the crossing of the group stage of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, when the Balkans achieved a resounding 3-0 victory. Of course, this time it will be for nothing less than a place in the Qatar 2022 final, with totally different realities from what happened four years ago.
Argentina, which began with a historic setback against Saudi Arabia, put together a series of victories that deposited it in the quarterfinals, where it played against the Netherlands in what was, perhaps, the most emotional game so far in the World Cup.
After being two goals ahead with just a few minutes to go, the European team managed to draw, forced extra time and everything was decided in a penalty shootout, where the South Americans got the well-deserved classification.
Croatia, meanwhile, returns to the semifinal just as it happened in Russia, where it reached the final and lost to France.
Beyond the "stainless" figure of Luka Modric, and a midfield that plays by heart, the Europeans reach the semifinal stage with an unprecedented event: it is the first team to reach this phase after having won a single game in regulation time .
Both against Japan in the round of 16 and against Brazil in the quarterfinals, the Balkans prevailed in the definition on penalties, after both tied at one goal.
Look at the statistics of Argentina and Croatia throughout the World Cup.
18 minutes ago
The two players from Argentina who miss the semifinal due to accumulation of yellow cards
Mateu Lahoz, the controversial referee of the Netherlands vs.
Argentina in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, he drew 17 yellow cards in the match, and his refereeing was highly criticized, especially by the albicelestes.
Nine Argentines were booked, including Lionel Messi, the team's star.
What happens with these yellow cards for the semifinal match against Croatia?
Who can and can't play?
The FIFA regulations for the World Cup make it clear: "If a player or member of the coaching staff is cautioned in two different matches, he will automatically be suspended and will not be able to participate in the next match of his team."
In the quarterfinal match, Marcos Acuña, Cristian Romero, Lisandro MartĂnez, Leandro Paredes, Lionel Messi, NicolĂĄs Otamendi, Gonzalo Montiel and GermĂĄn Pezzella received yellow cards, in addition to coach Lionel Scaloni.
Two of them had yellow cards from matches in the group stage: Marcos Acuña in the match against Poland and Gonzalo Montiel in the match against Mexico.
As both were booked against the Netherlands, they must serve a one-match suspension and will not be able to be in the semifinal against Croatia.
Acuña has played all five of Argentina's games, four as a starter and one coming on as a substitute (the first, against Saudi Arabia), according to data from DataFactory.
He is one of the fixed of the Scaloneta.
In the World Cup he has been replaced on the field by NicolĂĄs Tagliafico.
Montiel has played three games, one as a starter and two entering the game as a substitute.
Montiel is a replacement for Nahuel Molina.
2 hours ago
How to watch the game on television and internet
The first duel of the semifinals of the Qatar 2022 World Cup is played this Tuesday and is shaping up to be one of the best matches in the tournament, with two teams that arrive at their best moment and are also seeking revenge with their history.
On the one hand,
Argentina reaches
the stage of the best four after beating the Netherlands in the quarterfinals, in what is so far the most dramatic match of the World Cup.
La Albiceleste is just one game away from the final and, led by a wonderful captain Lionel Messi, they will seek to reach it with everything they have and, then, try to achieve a personal revenge that dates back to 2014, when the Argentine team lost the final against Germany in overtime at the World Cup in Brazil.
On the other hand,
Croatia
reached the semifinal after achieving a huge victory against the favorite Brazil, in a match that was decided until penalties like Argentina vs.
Netherlands.
The Croats are also looking for revenge, as they are currently runners-up in the world and have one more final in their sights, with a captain Luka ModriÄ who is playing better and better despite the passing of the years.
See how to watch the game on television and the internet, here.
25 mins ago
Rodrigo De Paul, another symbol of Scaloni's Argentina
TOPSHOT - Argentina's #10 forward Lionel Messi (L) and Argentina's #07 midfielder Rodrigo De Paul celebrate after winning the Qatar 2022 World Cup Round of 16 soccer match between Argentina and Australia at Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al-Rayyan, west of Doha.
December 3, 2022. (Photo by JUAN MABROMATA/AFP)
Rodrigo De Paul, who is participating in Qatar in its first FIFA World Cup, gradually became one of the symbols of the albiceleste and Lionel Messi's right-hand man, to such an extent that, despite having been one of the Players with less performance from Argentina in the first two games of the World Cup, Scaloni kept him among the headlines, as he did not with others such as Leandro Paredes, Cristian Romero, Lautaro MartĂnez, among others.
"Personally I think I went from low to high," De Paul said at a news conference before the match against Australia in the round of 16.
"I feel very good and the coaching staff gives me a lot of confidence. Playing 90 minutes is very important to me."
De Paul, 28, has played in all four of Argentina's matches in Qatar and has accumulated 48 international caps with the senior team, scoring twice since making his debut for the Albiceleste in October 2018 in a friendly match between Argentina and Iran.
That day was his first presentation when Argentina won by a 4-0 win.
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43 minutes ago
JuliĂĄn Ălvarez's great year: from River Plate to Manchester City and Argentina's starting striker
Argentina's forward #09 Julian Alvarez celebrates scoring his team's second goal during the Qatar 2022 World Cup round of 16 football match between Argentina and Australia at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al-Rayyan, west of Doha on December 3, 2022. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP) (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)
JuliĂĄn Ălvarez has had a dream year.
In a few months he went from the Argentine soccer fields to the European ones, to end up shining in his debut in the soccer World Cup with the Argentine team, with which he has scored two goals up to the round of 16 and has been key in the performance of the Albiceleste.
Ălvarez, 22, has accumulated five goals for Argentina in 16 games and was recently key in the victories against Poland and Australia in Qatar, in which he scored a goal in each game.
"He not only infects others... he shows the humility that he works," Argentine coach Lionel Scaloni said in August of Ălvarez before going to Qatar.
"He is a boy who has things very clear and he is going to contribute to his team and he is going to contribute to us, and that is good."
The full story, in this note.
44 mins ago
Why do they call the Argentine team La Scaloneta?
The Argentine team arrived in Qatar as one of the favorites thanks to a long streak of games without losing and a team that was gaining in security and quality of play.
But also in their own identity.
"La Scaloneta", as the team whose captain is Lionel Messi is popularly known, has become one of the teams with its own nickname, and in this case it is one in honor of its technical director, Lionel Scaloni.
How has Scaloni fared as Argentina coach?
What has he gained and what has he achieved?
But how did this particular nickname come about?
It was during the Copa América, in which Argentina became champion after 28 years without winning titles, and it was also thanks to the ingenuity and creativity of thousands of people on social networks.
Read more here.
47 mins ago
Lionel Scaloni's numbers before arriving in Qatar
(Photo: NELSON ALMEIDA/AFP via Getty Images)
Since assuming the technical direction of the Argentina national team, Lionel Scaloni has shown that his vision of football applied with the enviable talents of the albiceleste players, plus the mixture of youth and experience, are a dangerous combination for any rival.
The 'Scaloneta' reached the World Cup with a memorable unbeaten record that ended with the match against Saudi Arabia.
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47 mins ago
The history of Argentina in the World Cups
Argentina is one of the great favorites to win the title in the World Cup in Qatar 2022, with a team built from lowest to highest and that has Lionel Messi in what, perhaps, will be his last World Cup date as a player.
A historic host of the World Cups from the very beginning of the competition (it was runner-up in the first World Cup held in Uruguay in 1930), Argentina won the World Cup twice: as host in 1978 and with Diego Maradona in Mexico in 1986.
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48 mins ago
The sorrows and glories of Lionel Messi in the World Cups
Lionel Messi has won everything... except the World Cup.
The Argentine figure arrives in Qatar 2022 to play the fifth World Cup, which could be his last dance on the highest stage of football with his team.
Take a look at this summary of how Messi has fared in the World Cups he has played.
This is how Messi has done in the World Cups 1:55
Argentina National Team World Cup