Argentina - Australia: Messi decodes the phenomenon?
*Argentina - Australia: 2pm on Sunday, December 4, on MetaSports.
In Doha, the World Cup is Messi, and vice versa. The capital of Qatar is now filled with images of Argentine superstars. He is the face of brands, appearing on the fans' flags... There, Messi is not short because he is often shown on advertising screens located in skyscrapers.
Not surprising, because Messi is like a luxury brand of Qatar - which is the owner of the PSG football team.
Messi is also present in the minds of his colleagues. In the pre-match press conference, Australian defender Milos Degenek affirmed that he could have supported Argentina's coronation in Qatar this year because of Messi's idol, if the two teams had not clashed in the round of 16. However, the 28-year-old defender also affirmed that now is the time to talk professionally, not to let personal feelings interfere.
"I've always loved Messi. I think Messi is the greatest player in history," added Degenek. "But I don't feel honored to play with Messi, because he is a human being like all of us. It is an honor for me to be able to play for Australia in the round of 16 and continue the journey. Against Argentina or Poland, it is still an honor to represent the team at a World Cup."
He added: "I'm a big fan of Messi. But I'd rather win the World Cup than see him win the Gold Cup."
Head coach Graham Arnold thinks his players will not only focus on Messi - as Poland did and failed in the final round of the group stage. According to him, this is a battle between 22 players, and Argentina has many other high-class stars who can solve the match.
Despite the determination from Australia, there is still a huge difference in class on the field of Ahmad bin Ali today. No player in Australia's starting XI for the final group stage match against Denmark played in Europe's top five leagues. Even four of the 11 players are playing in the Second Division, including striker Mitchell Duke at Fagiano Okayama in Japan. In contrast, all 11 Argentine players play in the top five European leagues or teams that are participating in the Champions League.
This is the first time Argentina has met Australia at the World Cup, and also the first time since a friendly won 1-0 in September 2007 thanks to midfielder Martin Demichelis. According to the supercomputer's prediction, Argentina has an 81.8% chance of winning, compared with a mere 5% for Australia. The match was drawn in 90 minutes and entered extra time is rated at 13.2%.
In addition to the victory, Messi is looking for his first goal in the knockout round - where he has finished 23 times and assisted his teammates to score in the 1/8 round of 2010, 2014, 2018. Before an opponent has the lowest FIFA position to pass the group stage this year, opportunities are wide open for Messi.
