Long flowing hair, handsome face, powerful shooting, passionate celebration. He is the perfect striker in football, the symbol of loyalty, Batistuta, 20 years ago, he led the star-studded Argentina team to Asia for the first time, that Argentina team is luxurious, the back line has Ayala, Solin, Pochettino, Samuel, Zanetti, Pracente Titan; The midfield has Ortega, Veron, Simeone, Gonzalez, Aymal, etc., with both iron blood and technology; The forward line has big names such as Bugs Lupeth, Batistuta, Crespo and so on. The squad is so strong that even Riquelme, Saviola, Palermo, Cambiasso and others were not selected. The three-line configuration was balanced, and it was the favorite to win the championship at that time.
But after three group games, they were beaten by England in the second round after a good win over Nigeria in the first game. Unable to withstand the pressure in the final round, they were forced to draw by Sweden and regretted to be out of the group. The images of Barty tearfully shedding tears on the World Cup arena are still fresh in the memory of many Argentine fans.
History is always strikingly similar to Qatar 20 years later
Also in Asia, this time with Messi leading the Argentine team, although it is not as balanced as the Argentine team in 02, the star of the Plum King is dazzling enough, and the popularity is even closer to the existence of Maradona.
Also in the first two rounds 1 win and 1 loss, to decide the final round. The difference is that 20 years ago, Argentina won first and then lost, this time they lost to Saudi Arabia in the first round, and it was Messi's excellent performance that defeated Mexico in the second round to preserve their hopes of qualifying.
Also facing European teams in the final round, only the opponent has been changed from Sweden to Poland. The two teams played Saudi Arabia and Mexico in the first two rounds, although in terms of technical statistics, Poland is weaker than Mexico and even Saudi Arabia's technical statistics are better than Poland's.
Technical statistics for Argentina and Mexico
Technical statistics for Mexico and Poland
But the score on the pitch is the most important thing, and Poland has accumulated four points, their style is completely different from Saudi Arabia and Mexico, not only excellent physical fitness, the discipline of a European team, teamwork, and a decisive figure up front - Lewandowski. The most important thing is that Poland is currently at the top of the table with four points, and can calmly choose a tactical play, whether it can be a suitable high pressing throughout the game, or it can defend and counterattack. Argentina, on the other hand, can only take advantage of the qualifying situation by striving for victory, and at the same time defend well to prevent being attacked by attackers such as Lewandowski. It is not easy to achieve both offense and defense. If you can't take the lead in the first half, it will inevitably put a lot of psychological pressure on the players, and then the situation will be difficult to predict. The situation is too similar to 20 years ago, or even worse than in '02, which is worrying. The loss is basically eliminated, and the draw depends on the result of the match between Saudi Arabia and Mexico, which is also a lot of luck, and it is likely to repeat the tragedy of the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.
Also similar to 20 years ago is the age, when Barty was 34 years old and knew that it was his last World Cup, so he couldn't help but shed male tears after being out. Now that Messi is 35 years old, this is most likely Messi's last World Cup. Whether to leave Asia with the same regrets as Barty or lead Argentina forward, let's wait and see.
Do you think Messi can lead the Argentine group to break through? How far can it go? Welcome to leave a message to discuss!