FIFA World Cup 2010: Argentina vs Greece Georgios Samaras Faces Lionel Messi
Argentina, one of the firm favourites to win the World Cup, have played like champions with two convincing wins. The first one was against Nigeria, which was only one nil but in truth should have been way more than that. The 2nd one was more staggering than just convincing: a 4 -1 demolition of South Korea. Real Madrid Striker Gonzalo Higuain scored the first and so far only hat trick of the World Cup in that match.
Having won both their matches so far they have secured a place in the final 16 of the World Cup. Now it’s the turn of Greece to face the wrath of the South Americans, who look to be in no mood of getting their foot off the peddle. Even though Argentina have already made it to the pre-quarter finals, there is still a lot to play for Greece in this match.
Greece, after suffering a shock defeat at the hands of South Korea in their opening game, came back hard and notched up a convincing win against Nigeria, to get them back in the reckoning. Now they will be doing all they can to get points from the group leaders. The other group match, between Nigeria and South Korea, will be played simultaneously. Greece will be hoping that Nigeria manage to overcome South Korea. If that happens and Greece manage to even get a point against Argentina, they will go through to the next round. In hindsight, if Korea win the match, then Greece have to win, and that too with a superior goal difference than Korea. Considering that they are up against Argentina, it looks to be more than a tall order for the former European champions.
Argentina, meanwhile, may look to give a chance to players who have been warming the benches till now. There is still a long way to go in the World Cup, the fringe players may yet play a big role in the campaign, and a run out for them may be a good idea. But rest assured that there will be no let off in the style of play from the former world champions.
One man who would love to finally get the monkey off his back and score a World Cup goal is Lionel Messi; the little dynamite has been frustrated by not being able to score so far in the first 2 games. Even though he looked set to score a hat trick in the first game against Nigeria, only if finishing could have been slightly better. Messi, who has long been dubbed as the next Maradona, has had immense success so far in his short career at club level, having won the Champions League, Spanish League and Spanish Cup multiple times with Barcelona. He has also won the FIFA World Player of the Year, and European Player of the Year awards.
His critics, though, have their reservations, saying he has to perform exceptionally for his country in the World Cup to be considered anywhere close to his idol (Maradona). What better time for him to do that but in a match where the team will hardly be under any pressure? The left footer will be given license to play as freely as he wants, which will actually suit him.
For Greece, Georgios Samaras has to be the key; the tall striker, who had a brief stint with Manchester City and later moved to Celtic in Scotland, is more than capable of rubbing shoulders with the Argentine defence. His height is an added advantage, as he can be use as a target man for long balls, and his ability on the ground meanwhile is set to keep the Argentine defence on their toes.
Even though a lot will depend on what goes on in the other match, the matches will be played simultaneously, so Greece would simply have to go out with a mindset to win at all costs, and go for goals, bearing in mind that goal difference may be an issue, which in hindsight may give Argentina more opportunity to test the Greek backline. So it sure is poised to be an eventful match.
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