POLL – Will Argentina Qualify For World Cup 2010? The Lowdown on La Seleccion

As regular readers of Just Football will know, Argentina are in real danger of not making it to the 2010 World Cup. Their last 2 qualifiers yielded exactly nil points, and as they teeter dangerously on the brink of elimination we want to know whether you think Diego Maradona and co will make it to South Africa. Cast your vote in our poll on the right hand side of this page. First though, the lowdown on how Argentina got into this mess in the first place…

So what’s the situation with Argentina then?

Well, in October 2008 Argentina were not in the best of shape under the guidance of then national team coach Alfio Basile. After a good start to the qualifying campaign with 3 straight wins, results began to slip. A 1-1 draw in Lima against a woeful Peru side brought huge pressure on Basile, and it all came to a head when staunch rivals Chile then beat Argentina for the first time ever in a competitive match. The shame was too much for Basile, who promptly resigned, and a man named Diego Maradona took over as coach of la seleccion.

Maradona? Isn’t he a God in Argentina?

Well yes… but increasingly no. When Maradona took over the role of national team coach a lot of people in Argentina embraced the situation with hearts rather than heads. A wave of warm fuzzy nostalgia therefore washed to one side the uncomfortable fact that Maradona’s coaching record prior to landing the Argentina job was played 23 won 3.

The Argentine Football Association’s gamble was that the legend of Maradona would outweigh the need for things like coaching skills, and that his sheer presence alone would inspire the players to better performances.

Right. And how has that worked out?

Terribly. Maradona’s record in competitive internationals so far is won 2 lost 4, and where before Argentina were in a bad way but still pretty sure to qualify for the World Cup, they are now in very real danger of missing out on the party in South Africa next year. With 2 games remaining they lie 5th – not good enough for automatic qualification, and any further drop in places would see them eliminated.
So what do they have to do?

Put simply, win two football matches. Argentina’s last two games are at home to Peru on Saturday and away to Uruguay on October 15th. To qualify automatically for the World Cup they need to finish in the top four, but Brazil and Paraguay already have two places wrapped up and Chile look to have secured 3rd. So in a tight group, Argentina face a 5-team battle for that final 4th spot.

And if they finish 5th?

A two-legged play-off awaits against the 4th placed team in CONCACAF. That could mean a tough tie against one of USA, Costa Rica, Honduras or even Mexico, which would be very interesting indeed.

Peru are bottom of the group though. Easy pickings, right?

It should be. Peru are still in dire straits at international level after a string of internal problems. However, the opportunity to knock the giants of Argentina out of the World Cup is a big incentive and one that excites their players. Peru defender Carlos Zambrano summed up the feelings in Lima nicely: “What I want is to beat Argentina,” he said. “Those Argentine players will be crying and watching the World Cup next year on television.”

A loss to Peru would be the final blow for Maradona and Argentina, the most humiliating loss of all against South America’s worst team. Even if they win that, which they should, a trip to Montevideo to face neighbours Uruguay is a daunting challenge for a team so desperately out of form. Again, the incentives for Uruguay would be huge – they could secure their own passage to South Africa and eliminate their fierce rivals at the same time. That game will not be at all easy, no matter the result against Peru.

So what has Maradona got lined up then?

Hmm, probably not a good idea to use ‘Maradona’ and ‘lines’ in the same sentence. Nonetheless, El Diez has once again chopped and changed the squad, calling up two more debutants Emiliano Insua of Liverpool and Enzo Perez.

Maxi Rodriguez, Javier Zanetti and Fernando Gago have all been dropped from the squad, while Gonzalo Higuain has finally been called up and should start upfront against Peru. Bafflingly, Gabriel Heinze is still around for selection. Pablo Aimar (remember him?) is also back in the squad and should play in the hole behind the front two.

/>Let me ask you then. Will Argentina qualify for the World Cup?

Well, some might argue that a team that drew in Peru and lost away to Chile, Colombia, Paraguay, Ecuador and Bolivia (6-1) doesn’t deserve to go to the World Cup in the first place. But the chance is still there for Argentina if Ecuador drop points, and they have two tough fixtures – Uruguay at home and Chile away. I don’t see Ecuador getting maximum points from that.

So yes – I think Argentina will qualify for the World Cup, after which Maradona will probably resign.

What do you think? Have your say by voting in our poll on the right hand side of this page ——>

and let us know how you think it will all pan out.

NB - Because of international week there is no ‘3 To See’ this weekend. There are simply too many crucial games to choose from!

Argentina, Argentinian Football, Football in Latin America, Maradona, Peru, Polls, Uruguay, World Cup 2010