Full time: Argentina 1-1 Brazil
Well folks, what appeared to be a game where Argentina would come out with the victory ended in a draw as Brazil scored a wonderful goal in the second half. To be honest, both goals were fantastic but there were a lot of disappointing performances. Neymar, for one, did not have a good game. He seemed lost and without any sense of knowing how to control his side of the pitch. Perhaps we should give credit to Argentina’s backline. Di Maria was fantastic and it still amazes me how Van Gaal was not able to utilize him. Not sure who would be the happier team but one thing is for sure, this CONMEBOL table is up for grabs.
Thanks so much for tuning in and to my Spanish readers, I’ll see you next week for El Clasico.
Have a great weekend.
90+3 mins: End of the match.
90+3 mins: Brazil now looking for the point as they waste time.
90+2 mins: Brazil defending heavily as they are playing with ten men. Argentina looking for a second goal. The replay on Luiz’s foul appears to have been a stamp on Biglia but I’m not sure if he got him.
90 mins: The match is now filled with silly attempts to get the ref’s attention. Not exactly what you want to see.
88 mins: David Luis sent off.
Luiz sent off on two yellow cards.
88 mins: David Luiz gets a second yellow as he tackles Biglia on a 50 50 ball. Not sure if this is more Biglia’s performance than anything else. The replay didn’t see that he touched him.
86 mins: David Luiz with a yellow.
84 mins: The game is now filled with errors as things get tense. It’s been a disappointing for Neymar who has done very little.
81 mins: Yellow for Mascherano. A horrible foul.
80 mins: The last ten minutes and it’s difficult to see what will happen. Lamela enters for Banega, Dybala for Higuain.
77 mins: What a chance for Higuain. A cross from the left hand side tries to find the Napoli striker but it just goes above. The ball hits Luis and Alisson picks it up.
74 mins: What a move. Willian with the famous flip-flap, a la Ronaldinho, breaks two defenders as if they weren’t there, but the shot is deflected.
73 mins: Brazil pushing for a second but Argentina’s box is filled with defenders. After the equalizer things are very even now.
69 mins: Gaitan, from Benfica, enters for Lavezzi. Both goal scorers out of the game.
66 mins: El Fideo Di Maria causing havoc once again. Twisting and turning inside Brazil’s box but his cross fails to materialize. It’s amazing to me how he didn’t succeed in Manchester.
63 mins: Augusto enters the game for Lima, the scorer.
Goal! Argentina 1-1 Brazil (Lima, 58 mins)
What a fantastic goal. A minute after entering the field, Costa makes an impact. His header hits the crossbar and Lima smashes the rebound. Game on.
56 mins: Douglas Costa comes on for Olivieira.
53 mins: A good chance for Brazil as Filipe Luis runs on the left hand side and with a pass to Neymar in the center of the field who shots a curving shot and just goes wide.
50 mins: Brazil with two corners but nothing to show for it. It might not happen for them tonight. They have shown very little so far.
45 mins: And we’re off! And straight away Banega hits the post. Amazing.
Some strong feelings about Neymar’s attire from Shane:
“Who let Neymar onto the pitch wearing that knitted hat? The referee? His manager? His team mates? The Brazilian Federation? It’s a complete disgrace. Who is he playing for? Brazil of Nike? If we need confirmation that the beautiful game is dead, here it is.”
45+2 mins: End of the first half. Dunga, I’m sure, will have a lot to say in the dressing room. Argentina and Di Maria have been excellent.
45 mins: We will have 2 minutes of injury time.
41 mins: David Luiz comes close with a header from a free-kick but it goes just over.
37 mins: Things are now heating up as Luis Gutavo and Ottamendi get into a scuffle. Brazil are feeling the heat. Argentina looking for a second as a cross goes wide.
35 mins: What a fantastic goal. And how great for Martino to see his three forwards all involved.
Goal!!!! Argentina 1-0 Brasil (Lavezzi 33 mins)
A beautiful goal which began with Di Maria and a sublime through ball to Higuain, who crosses it to Lavezzi and taps it in.
32 mins: Filipe Luis gets a yellow with a foul on Di Maria.
29 mins: Alisson is fine. So far the match has been a mix of many mistakes and unnecessary bad tackling. Brazil with more options down the wing but a cross gets collected by Romero.
26 mins: Brazil’s goalkeeper, Alisson looks in trouble here. He is on the ground being attended.
23 mins: Beautiful stuff from Argentina. Some quick passing in the middle eventually ends up with Banega and he shoots it just over the bar. It has been a great idea by Martino, where Di Maria has become the focal point.
20 mins: In a match where Brazil are lacking some creativity, the question of why Coutinho didn’t start surfaces. Dani Alves with a foul, Argentina looking for a break but finds Higuain offside.
16 mins: After the chance in the first minute, Higuain has been invisible. Brazil feeling more of the ball as the game continues.
12 mins: Brazil have definitely improved. After Argentina’s initial burst of energy, the visitors with a few chances as Willian crosses the ball but finds no one.
A very good point. Roncaglia is saved from the fact that Costa doesn’t start.
Roncaglia se salvo de Douglas Costa. Trabajo extra para Di Maria debe ser el líder y la oportunidad para Banega. #ARGBRA #Eliminatorias
— Mario Lòpez Escalona (@mlopezesfutbol) November 14, 2015
8 mins: Brazil with a corner gets defended well and Argentina on the counter as Di Maria once again runs like a man on a mission. Just misses the touch and keeper collects.
5 mins: Di Maria with a fantastic run on the right hand side, passes David Luiz as he wasn’t there and shoots just wide. It’s all Argentina right now.
3 mins: What a start for Argentina. After a shot from outside the box, Higuain almost capitalizes but it goes straight to the hands of the keeper. The hosts have started brightly.
1 min: Peep! Peep! And we’re off. Brazil kick-off left to right from the screen’s view.
We will have one moment of silence for the events that happened tonight. #PrayforParis
Anthems are done and now the players get ready for their team photo. We are moments away.
Well done, groundsmen.
Fans already started entering the Monumental. Maximum capacity expected tonight, over 66k. #ARGBRA pic.twitter.com/7juKQ6I53e
— #FechadoComASeleção (@BrazilStats) November 13, 2015
It must be said that the groundsmen did a fantastic job with the pitch. It looks fantastic. The anthems are now being sung and both teams as kick-off approaches.
10 minutes to go.
Argentina and Brazil fans are already ready for the clássico. Only 10 minutes left! #ARGBRA pic.twitter.com/vozCyUXn02
— #FechadoComASeleção (@BrazilStats) November 13, 2015
And just in case you are interested in Team USA vs St Vincent tonight make sure you follow Tim Hill’s excellent coverage right here:
http://www.theguardian.com/football/live/2015/nov/13/us-st-vincent-world-cup-2018-qualifying-live
Brazil XI: Alisson, Alves, Miranda, David Luiz, Filipe, Elias, Luiz Gustavo, Willian, Lucas Lima, Oliveira, Neymar
Argentina XI:
#Eliminatorias Repasamos la formación Albiceleste para el encuentro de esta noche https://t.co/DyAfQuUdC5 pic.twitter.com/KlEA7wMdSE
— Selección Argentina (@Argentina) November 13, 2015
Thanks Jim, for your email. As far as I know, they will be showing the game on BeIn, don’t worry about the TV guide. They wouldn’t update it.
“Does anyone know if this game is being shown live in the US? BeIn has what looks very much like a pregame show, but my TV guide is still showing their original schedule...”
Hello everyone.
Before we begin talking about tonight’s action I just wanted to send my thoughts out to everyone in Paris. The live-blog will continue as normal but there won’t be much humor tonight. Some things are bigger than soccer and this is one of them.
#prayforparis
In the face of such senseless ugliness, the simple human beauty of Parisians opening their doors to strangers. #PorteOuverte
— Mark Joyella (@standupkid) November 13, 2015
Welcome everyone to Argentina v Brazil: round two. It’s safe to say the decision to postpone the match last night was a smart one as torrential downpour flooded the pitch making it look like a giant-sized world map. Barring any hiccups the game should go on tonight but one has to wonder how playable will this pitch be? A bonus should go to the groundsmen, that’s for sure.
Will the change of day affect the player’s physical or mental state? David Luiz doesn’t think so.
Anyhow, on to the game. Here are my thoughts:
Amazingly, this is only their seventh meeting in a World Cup qualifier, with only one draw back in 2008. Brazil has never missed a WC and Argentina last missed the tournament in 1970. It hasn’t been smooth for either team so far, and this is a huge battle where a win can mean more than just a scoreline. In my opinion, you don’t get more exciting than South American qualifiers and it doesn’t get bigger than this one.
Argentina: Martino has a depleted squad, especially upfront. No Messi, Aguero or Tevez is surely an issue for “el Albiceleste,” but with Higuaín on form for Napoli and the support of Di María and Lavezzi, there is no lack of talent. They are searching for their first win of their campaign and only a point to their name.
Brazil: The big piece of news is that Neymar returns. The forward wasn’t around in the first two games and this is great news for Dunga as his star player, supported by the wonderful Douglas Costa and free-kick maestro, Willian, is on fire for Barcelona. He’ll be looking to cause some havoc tonight. But Brazil need to prove that they are not “Neymarpendiente” (Neymardependent) and have more than just flair.
This is a match with tremendous passion, vigor and history.
The question is: Can they take control of the present that awaits them at the Monumental?
Line-ups coming up.
Luis will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s Jonathan Wilson on why Brazil have problems on and off the pitch:
The World Cup was catastrophic for the image of Brazilian football not just because of the way they went out on that apocalyptic night in Belo Horizonte, but for the way they played throughout. They were arrogant, cynical and overly physical, immersed in the cult of Neymar, gripped by an overwhelming sense of entitlement that blinded them to their inadequacies until it was too late.
What was staggering was that the 7-1 defeat by Germany in that semi-final didn’t provoke change. Luiz Felipe Scolari moved on but was replaced as coach byDunga, another dinosaur. The result was a shambolic Copa América that saw them beaten by Colombia in the group stage before going out on penalties to Paraguay in the quarter-final. Neymar, his spirit apparently crushed by the expectation, lashed out after the Colombia defeat, but returns for the trip to Buenos Aires from the four-game suspension his petulance earned him.
