What an exciting first Saturday of the Mondial!
Four days after their convincing entry against Australia (4-1), the France team moved on to reveal Denmark (5 p.m.).
Barely, the excitement subsided, Argentina will capture all eyes against Mexico (9 p.m.), Messi and his family being obliged to win, after their misstep in front of Saudi Arabia (1- 2) Tuesday.
The program
11 a.m.: Tunisia - Australia (beIN)
2 p.m.: Poland v Saudi Arabia (beIN)
5 p.m.: France - Denmark (beIN, TF1)
8 p.m.: Argentina - Mexico (beIN, TF1)
The poster: Argentina - Mexico
At the Lusail Stadium in Doha, where the tournament final will be held on December 18, Argentina are already condemned not to lose against Mexico.
But, after the slap received against the Saudis on Tuesday, any other result than a victory over Mexico this Saturday would precipitate the Albiceleste into crisis...
Lionel Messi is, as usual, at the center of all discussions.
After the Parisian has been exempted from several training sessions in recent days, Scaloni sent the subject: “Leo is doing well and more than ever we need everyone.
We have no doubts, physically and morally, Leo is fine.
There is no problem.
Like all his teammates, they know the cards are on the table and it continues to depend on us.
»
“The team's way of playing will be similar.
We are not going to change our way of playing because of what happened on Tuesday.
We have to turn the page as we did, think that we are going to win and nothing else, we intend to play the same way.
The three Argentinian goals disallowed for offside in front of the Saudis confirmed Scaloni in the idea that his team, which remained on 36 games without defeat before the accident on Tuesday, were still right: "We are evaluating alternatives to our game but not our way of playing.
We may make some variations but we will decide during the last practice.
»
Obviously, the precedents will not be of much help to the Argentines in their situation, but they can always be repeated that the Albiceleste always wins over Mexico in the World Cup.
In 2006, they won 2-1 after extra time in 1/8th.
At Leipzig, Messi only came on in the 84th minute - on his 19th birthday.
One of his teammates was called Lionel Scaloni, who was playing his only World Cup match on this occasion.
In 2010 in Johannesburg, Argentina had taken out Mexico in 1/8th, thanks to a 3-1 victory, in the presence of Messi and with Diego Maradona on the bench.
Finally, there is no doubt that Scaloni would sign for a remake of the first Argentina - Mexico in history: 6-3, during the first World Cup in history at the Centenario stadium in Montevideo (Uruguay) in 1930 in the group stage.
Player to watch: Salem al-Dawsari
Nicknamed "the tornado" in Saudi Arabia, 31-year-old dribbling winger Salem al-Dawsari made himself known to the world with the magnificent 2-1 goal in the Saudis' feat against Argentina on Tuesday.
Facing Poland this Saturday (2 p.m.), will al-Dawsari have new opportunities to express his talent?
Sometimes presented as the "Neymar of the Gulf", he is in any case held in high esteem by Hervé Renard, the coach of the Desert Falcons "(He is) one of the players capable of making a difference...", explained the French technician before the World Cup, which also mentioned Salma al-Farajh, the captain.
Hervé Renard's historic talk at half-time Argentina / Saudi Arabia 😱pic.twitter.com/8FYOLns2cU
- CANAL + Foot (@CanalplusFoot) November 25, 2022
Player of al-Hilal, the heavyweight club in the region (twice winner of the Asian C1 in the last three editions), like a dozen members of the selection, al-Dawsari had notably scored in the 2019 final against the Japanese club Urawa Red Diamonds (2-0, 1-0), and he scored many other important goals for Saudi football before that of Lusail - 18 goals, 72 caps.
From his first selection in a qualifying match for the 2014 World Cup, he scored straight away, without preventing the playoff defeat against Australia (4-2).
Four years later in Russia, he had already scored a historic goal in the World Cup, that of the prestigious victory against Egypt (2-1) at the very end of the match, when the two teams were already eliminated.
In a meeting with high diplomatic stakes against Yemen, in the qualifying phase, he had notably avoided humiliation for his country by scoring the equalizing goal (2-2).
He is one of nine Saudi players who tasted the Spanish Championship in 2018, as part of a partnership with La Liga.
He had joined Villarreal but had only played around thirty minutes in a match against Real Madrid (2-2).
“I learned a lot during this period, especially on tactics, speed and physical form,” he nevertheless concluded.
Born in the province of al-Aflaj, 300 km south of Riyadh, the number 10 of the greens was launched by the German Thomas Doll in al-Hilal.
In general, he likes to celebrate his goals with the gesture of the cook spicing up his dish, popularized by American basketball player James Harden.
But during his goal against Argentina, seized by emotion, he performed a somersault.
Al-Dawsari can also show a fiery temper: in 2015, his club imposed a month's salary fine and six matches on him for a head-to-head challenge with a referee.
"My goal is to promote Saudi football," he says.
If Saudi Arabia climbs to 1/8th, as in 1994 for its first World Cup, it will be done.
The sentence: "Tunisians like physical matches and we must be up to it..."
Australia coach Graham Arnold wants the Socceroos, defeated 4-1 by France on Tuesday, to take up the physical challenge against Tunisia (11 a.m.).
"Tunisians like physical matches and we have to be up to it on this aspect," said the 59-year-old technician.
"We have to beef up our game and give the maximum..."
The number: 0
At the time of facing Saudi Arabia with Poland (2 p.m.), Robert Lewandowski's counter remains desperately stuck at zero in the World Cup!
Incredible from the Polish center-forward of FC Barcelona, 34, author of some 600 goals in domestic and European competitions, with Bayern Munich for eight years in particular.
In his defense, "Lewy" has only played four World Cup matches so far, three in Russia and one in Qatar, against Mexico, during which he missed a penalty...
“Robert is our number one, hammered Czeslaw Michniewicz, the Polish coach at a press conference.
As an attacker, it will be up to him to decide if he wants to take the penalty or if he leaves the ball.
He feels ready to score for Poland..."
