Argentina are one of the World Cup favorites in Russia this summer, led by one of the best players in the history of soccer, Lionel Messi. Iceland shocked everyone with their quarterfinal run at Euro 2016, and they’re trying to build on that. The two open up Group D action on June 16th.
What To Know About Argentina
Argentina won the World Cup in 1978 at home and again in 1986, and they finished second to Germany in Brazil in 2014. They finished third in CONMEBOL to return to the World Cup as Messi scored seven goals in qualification, including a hat trick in a 3-1 win over Ecuador to send Argentina to Russia. This team has a lot of very good players; Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain are two of the best strikers in Europe, and Angel Di Maria is inconsistent, but extremely talented. Argentina shouldn’t be this dependent on Messi, but they are, and they have to work on that because he was clearly burned out after carrying them to the final in 2014 (Di Maria was injured, to be fair). There are some questions at the back in front of goalkeeper Sergio Romero. Nicolas Otamendi played the most in qualification for Argentina, but he has also made big mistakes for Manchester City this season. Marcos Rojo has been injured for most of the season at Manchester United and hopes to get some work in before the World Cup. Keep an eye on that situation, but Argentina has Messi and because of that, the sky is the limit for them.
What To Know About Iceland
Iceland makes their World Cup debut after a stunning run to the quarterfinals at Euro 2016, where they eliminated England and lost to the hosts from France. Then, they won their UEFA group to book their ticket to Russia. Gylfi Sigurdsson led the team in qualification with four goals, while Alfred Finnbogason had three. However, Sigurdsson suffered a knee injury and although he recently returned to Everton, it is still worth watching because he is Iceland’s main attacking threat. Iceland has a well-drilled defense with Birkir Saevarsson, Ragnar Sigurdsson and Kari Arnason all playing at least nine games in qualification. They range in age from 31 to 35 years old, so that is something to watch. Captain Aron Gunnarsson does a fine job of shielding the defense.
Outlook
Argentina are huge favorites at 1.36 to win this matchup, while Iceland comes in at 9.00 and a draw is listed at 4.50. This is the first time that these two countries will meet, and you can expect Iceland to try and contain Messi, either with man-marking or double coverage, although better teams have tried both and failed. Argentina will probably have most of the possession with Iceland looking to hit on the counterattack, and Argentina’s defense is shaky enough that it could be a problem for them. Argentina should absolutely win this game, but a point isn’t out of the question for Iceland and Argentina can’t afford to overlook them.
World Cup Betting Pick: Argentina
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