This match enacts an old theme: Latin American flair vs European doggedness. But the fact is that Argentina has failed to recapture their famed flair of Maradona’s times. And Switzerland rarely displayed technical excellence and never-say-attitude of the Germans and Italians. Still, the match should witness some highly technical football, thanks to the skill and talent of individual players in both the teams.

Argentina-Switzerland Preview

Argentina, like Brazil, so far has been a team carried by one superstar. Lionel Messi’s occasional moments of magic helped the team to qualify as the top team of their group. In all the games, Messi was closely marked, but still managed to produce some game-changing performances. What would worry the Argentine fans is the form of the other super stars. None of them managed to do justice to their reputation.

Switzerland, on the other hand, has had a horror game against France. But they come back strongly, with a thumping win over Honduras in their final league game. They have a bunch of technically gifted, hard-working players. Their defense fell apart against France. They have a chance against Argentina, if they can avoid such a defensive melt down.

Players

Messi is the all-important figure for Argentina, in spite of the presence of some other super stars like Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo Higuain, and Ángel di María. Aguero is injured and is unlikely to start. But Argentina has a good replacement in Ezequiel Lavezzi.

Xherdan Shaqiri, who scored a hat-trick against Honduras, has emerged as the talisman for the Swiss. He is likely to cause problems to Argentina’s ageing defenders.

Argentina-Switzerland Prediction

So far, all the big teams have qualified to the quarter final. Argentina is likely to go through to the final eight as well.

Argentina 1.53 @ Bet365

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