FIFA World Cup 2022: Argentina vs. Saudi Arabia prediction, odds, Team news, and Preview
Argentina’s game versus Saudi Arabia in Group C of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar marks Lionel Messi’s fifth and perhaps final World Cup. The Albiceleste will still have to earn their spot at the top of the group, which also includes Mexico and Poland. Messi has six goals in his World Cup history and helped Argentina reach 2014 final, where they lost to Germany in extra time thanks to the infamous Mario Gotze winner. They’ll be hoping to exact revenge on that loss and win the trophy this time. While waiting, Saudi Arabia makes the incredibly brief journey to Qatar over the eastern border to take part in the first World Cup held in the Middle East. With one point more than Japan, they took first place in their Asian final-round qualification table.
Argentina vs. Saudi Arabia Preview
Saudi Arabia put in a lot of effort to advance Japan in the qualification standings and into the 2022 World Cup. The Middle Eastern team will need to play at their highest level to win this game after losing by a slim margin of 1-0 to Croatia the previous week. On the other side, Argentina has been in the outstanding form under Lionel Scaloni and is one of the favorites to win the competition. The Albiceleste destroyed the UAE 5-0 in their previous match, and they’ll try to start off their World Cup campaign with a similar result.
Although Lionel Messi and the Albiceleste are renowned for their offensive prowess, they are not really an offensive-minded team. They’ve come out of their shell in exhibition games like friendly matches or the 3-0 win over Italy in the Finalissima, but they play differently in tournament-style action. Argentina has only scored more than one goal in one of its past four Copa America group stage games and just five of its last 13 World Cup qualification games dating back to the summer of 2021.
The same is true for Saudi Arabia, which is aware that in order to succeed, it must defend aggressively. No one of Saudi Arabia’s 13 games in 2022 (nine friendlies and four World Cup qualification games) went above 2.5 goals, while neither team scored more than once s and four World Cup qualification games) went above 2.5 goals, while neither team scored more than once (a 2-0 victory for Japan in qualifying). In fact, the last time Saudi Arabia played a game that went over a run of 19 straight games, was in a 3-2 victory over China in October of 2021. No, they haven’t faced anyone nearly as good as Argentina, but they did manage to hold Colombia, Venezuela, and Croatia to just one goal while keeping score against Ecuador, the United States, Iceland, and Australia.
Argentina vs. Saudi Arabia odds
Argentina, as one of the top teams in the field and the second favorite to win the entire tournament, is the clear favorite in this encounter. The term “big favorites” doesn’t quite capture how lopsided the odds are, as bookmakers all around the world anticipate a lopsided outcome to this match. Many bet on Argentina to score a lot of goals, favoring the over-goal market, while the odds on both teams scoring are heavily in favor of “no,” as many bet on the Albiceleste to keep the game scoreless.
Argentina vs. Saudi Arabia team news
Gio Lo Celso, an Argentinean, will miss the World Cup due to a quad injury he sustained in late October. After sustaining a knee injury during the pre-tournament friendly against the UAE, Joaqin Correa was replaced on the list. Nico Gonzalez was another late withdrawal from the team. However, there is positive news: Paulo Dybala and Leandro Paredes have both been cleared to play.
Saleh Al-Shehri, a central striker, just made a full recovery from an Achilles injury, although he was not included on the World Cup squad. Fahad al-Muwallad would have been on the team, but a doping suspension prevented him from competing. Although Al-Suspension Muwallad’s is set to end a few days before the tournament begins, head coach Herve Renard made the decision to choose other players who will be available throughout the full event.
Argentina vs Saudi Arabia Prediction
Argentina is currently unbeaten in 36 games and is in a great position to continue this impressive streak at the FIFA World Cup in 2022. Unsurprisingly, Lionel Messi is the heartbeat of his team and must perform at his best this year. Saudi Arabia has their work cut out for them in this match, although they are capable of the occasional upset. Argentina is the squad with the stronger record on paper, and they won’t accept anything short of a convincing win.