Argentina and Poland will play the passage to the round of 16 of the tournament this Wednesday in a match marked by their two world stars
Messi dreams of becoming world champion. Lewandowski doesn’t even think about it. Barcelona’s past and present face each other this Wednesday at the 974 Stadium in a duel that exudes a tragic atmosphere for the greatest player in history. Poland has one point more than Argentina, but they cannot devote themselves to counting comfortably, because if they lose, both Arabia and Mexico, who play the other group game, can overtake them on the right. However, Scaloni’s troops don’t even have time to fiddle with the calculator in Qatar.
If they don’t get a win, they’ll be left on the line, probably with the return ticket in their pocket. In this decisive match, Messi plays more than Lewandowski because his expectations are much higher. The Polish striker is dealing with an enthusiastic and uncomfortable team, but one that no one can imagine winning the Jules Rimet Cup.
Argentina, on the other hand, is almost by definition one of the favourites. And Leo feels that no matter how many Ballon d’Ors he wins, no matter how many stats he destroys, no matter how many goals he scores, only if he takes the world champion trophy will he be able to keep his great record and sit to the right of Diego in the Olympus of the Argentine Gods. The astonishing setback against Saudi Arabia has turned the first stage of the World Cup into a path of thorns for the Argentines, who at the time were sure they were already classified. Messi’s tense grimace, focused and sometimes desperate, illustrates the fear of a group that sometimes gives the impression that they have a lot of grit but no arguments.
Everything indicates that Scaloni will continue to rely on Guido Rodríguez and Rodrigo de Paul to establish his midfield dominance, as happened in the game against Mexico, while Lautaro Martínez will once again run in front of goal. In the end, as always, everything depends on Leo Messi, on whose prodigious left leg Argentina’s hopes rest. “We have to stay calm and not put ourselves under pressure. Things will flow naturally,” advised Manchester United central defender Lisandro Martínez, with more faith than conviction, who will certainly start again in the center of the Albiceleste defense. In the press room, both Lisandro and the coach, Lionel Scaloni, insisted that the victory against Mexico had restored the old sensations, although in the first part of that game an Argentine team was blocked by their own nerves.
On the Polish side there is much more peace. Lewandowski freed himself from intimate pressure when he scored his first goal in the World Cup against Saudi Arabia last Saturday. A draw would have them enough to progress to the next stage, so Poland, aware of their creative limitations, probably decide to leave the ball to Argentina, entrusting themselves to their goalkeeper, Szczesny, in case of trouble, and confident that one day they will connect their two most dangerous men: Zielinski and the Barcelona striker.
A Polish journalist asked Scaloni yesterday whether Lewandowski and Messi are now on the same level. “That’s a trick question,” he slipped away. Comparisons are useless. You have to enjoy them.” The Santa Fe coach, who also spoke of the “privilege” of being able to see the Polish nine up close, acknowledged that the victory against Mexico had meant “mental input” to the group, although he left a warning on the air: “The group stages are treacherous.”
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
