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Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is an Irish independent podcast.
Another football show in your feed here with Ronan alongside once again, Will Slattery.
Will, how are you? For the listener, it will be 12 hours. For us, it will have been 12 seconds since we were last talking.
Oh, well, look, I've already diagnosed the reason for this in the previous episode. So that's another back reference for those who want to listen. And Alana is still here as well. Alana, how are you?
Hi, Roland.
So as mentioned, there's an accompanying episode waiting for you in the feed chatting about Ireland's upcoming doubleheader, some other talking points, and of course, the New York Knicks, customary mention in there as well. This episode, though, is our official one week countdown to the 2026 World Cup kicks off in Mexico. We're not there, unfortunately.
But our preview today starts with the champs, Argentina. We preview their chances and those of the South American teams at large with the doyen of football in that region, Tim Vickery. Will, are you pumped for the World Cup or pre-pumped?
pumped adjacent it's funny I was looking at the fixture list I've been looking at the fixture list a lot kind of planning the games I might watch because obviously a lot of them are on overnight for the first time really the time it was in Brazil I was actually in America that summer so like the games were on kind of normal time so I didn't experience it like that so throughout my life basically every World Cup has been very accessible time wise so this will be a departure for that and
I was looking at the fixtures and nothing was really grabbing me early doors. And I went back to 2022 to see comparably. And the games were broadly of a similar matchup. But the big difference, obviously, is the stakes have been so significantly reduced in the group stage this time around that they don't feel quite as alive. Like, you know, I know Die Mannschaft will be very close to your heart.
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Chapter 2: What are the current expectations for the World Cup?
Norway-France will be good. That's another group game that you'd be circling. I think it's like 8 o'clock on a Friday potentially as well. So that'll be really good. Scotland-Brazil. There's a few games. Scotland-Brazil.
Chapter 3: How do Argentina's chances compare to Brazil's?
Scotland-Brazil, it's not like 11 o'clock at night or maybe midnight even. But yeah, that'll be really good. That group is actually good. Scotland-Morocco and Brazil in the same group. But obviously with Haiti as cannon fodder, if they all beat Haiti, they all have a good chance of getting out.
But those games will feel... Scotland playing Brazil will feel kind of like a big moment and have a big tournament feel. the England-Croatia game, as I mentioned, France-Norway. Outside of that, I think Spain play Uruguay as well, but that might be an overnighter. Marcelo Bielsa, we mentioned the other day, is the Uruguay manager.
But it's funny, you remember we were mentioning managers that pop up. I have a good one for you. I went through the whole list just to see if there's anyone else I'd missed. So we had Qatar, Julian Lopetegui, Curacao Dick Advocate, Ghana Carlos Cruz, as you pointed out. Do you know who the Uzbekistan manager is?
I don't 2006 Ballon d'Or winner Fabio Cannavaro oh wow is the Uzbekistan manager that's a good guess this is not a match I would have put together necessarily in my head but that was the only other one I was like ah like the Leonardo DiCaprio meme when he's pointing at the TV I was like I know you so that'll be an interesting one
So I do remember the 98 World Cup because of the vivid colours. I remember 2002 World Cup, obviously, because we were in it. But the first one where I watched it kind of half thinking I know a bit about football was 06. And Cannavaro was unbelievable in that tournament.
Yeah.
Like, there's no surprise he won the Ballon d'Or, probably off the strength of an international competition, which wouldn't probably... Madras was the same in 18, I'd say.
Yeah.
To a degree, he won the Champions League as well, I suppose. There is a South American hue to today's episode. Will's already mentioned a couple of the runners and riders. You've got Argentina, 17 of the squad that won in 2022, still there. Messi, once again, there wearing the number 10 shirt, but not as central tactically as he had been previously. Then you've got Brazil. Neymar is in the squad.
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Chapter 4: How does Messi's role evolve in the upcoming tournament?
That's a long, long way away. We're in midwinter here. Look at the temperature that the players are going to be subjected to. But yes, South America has a 100% record, although I think that this is going to be the most difficult one. If you look at that Brazil win in USA 94, you look at the European teams and their level, and you compare it with the European teams now,
France didn't even qualify for USA 94. Spain did, but they were a completely different footballing animal. Their footballing culture has changed remarkably in the subsequent decades. So you've got France and Spain far, far stronger. England as well. England didn't qualify for USA 94. Look at the amount of talent that England can call on now. It is no coincidence, I think, that
Every Brazil campaign since they won the last World Cup, the last time in 2002, has ended as soon as they've come up against the European side in the knockout stages. And that's part of the explanation for the fact that now Brazil have a European coach. Come on down, Carlo Ancelotti.
Yeah. And we might start, you mentioned this crescendo of your book being Messi lifting the World Cup and we should start with the champions. The Messi chronology is interesting from a World Cup point of view because 2006, 20 years on, he was an emerging force at that stage still. Like Raquel May was still the beatmaker in that team. 2010, it was Messi's team.
He had the number 10 shirt, but it was Maradona, melodrama. He had main character energy. 2014 proved to be a faux crescendo in many ways. It did seem like we looked back prior to 2022 and thought that might have been his best chance. Kick of a ball another way and they beat Germany that day and he has his crowning moment in his prime probably.
Then you get to 2018 where, again, even just looking at something as easy as his age, you're thinking, OK, 2018, we're getting close to a time where he might be running out of chances. And for all that they lost to eventual champions France 4-3, that scoreline didn't really tell the whole tale. They went toe-to-toe and France were much better than them. And to turn that around...
four years later and when he's in the winter of his career or what seemed like then the winter of his career to have this unbelievable performance where he stood up in the realest way and delivered a World Cup to Argentina and we saw the scenes which came it did feel like if that was a Western that he's won his World Cup he strides off into the sunset and never to be seen again and yet here we are he is to be seen again Tim maybe not the focal point he was in 2022 but still Argentina will be hanging a lot of their hopes on him
in a few weeks it is an extraordinary story it's a tale of two Lionels really because Argentina 2018 they're an absolute shambles and he'd already flirted with retiring from the international game and he really thought then that right that's going to be it he's not going to bother with this anymore and Scaloni takes over as a coach on one single ground he's cheap and
They have to pay off their coach, Sampaoli, who was on a long-term contract. Scaloni just happens to be there. He'd been one of the observers of Argentina's opponents during 2018. He's never coached a senior team in his life. Diego Maradona at the time says, he's a nice lad, this Scaloni, but you wouldn't pick him to direct traffic, let alone the national team.
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Chapter 5: What are the implications of Neymar's injury for Brazil?
That's because no one has come through. Scaloni's had a look at a few defenders and he hasn't been convinced by any of them. And if you remember the number of times that defensive unit collapsed under pressure in Qatar, you think this World Cup with an extra knockout round, there's a day when this is going to go wrong.
And history tells us it's very difficult, if not impossible, to do what Argentina are trying to do. Italy retained the World Cup in France in 38. Brazil retained the World Cup in Chile in 62. No one's ever retained it outside your own home continent. So history tells us this is a tough ask. Although I think in Argentina, maybe there's less melodrama about this one.
than there has been about previous times when they were champions. And because this team has been so victorious, arguably the most successful Argentina side in history. I think that there's probably more of an expectation. There's more of an acceptance if they don't win this time around. It won't quite be seen as a tragedy by so many, I think. It's, all right, this is a farewell to Messi.
And as long as they manage to leave the scene with dignity, I think a lot of people in Argentina won't be too disappointed by that.
Are there many players in the squad in a similar fashion to maybe Enzo Fernandes the last time where went from being maybe not as talked about heading into the World Cup and ultimately a player we all know now. Nico Paz I know is probably more high profile in that regard but is he the kind of player who could light up a tournament like this and you know have a central role?
He's one of their big injury worries at the moment. Buendia of Aston Villa is very, very much on standby because they're worried. They've got a few injuries, few injury concerns, but it seems that Nico Paz is the worst of them. He hasn't really gelled with Argentina yet, and I suspect it's difficult to fit him and Messi in together, not least because when Messi wants the ball to feet,
So ideally, with him, you want people who want the ball in front of them. It's one of the reasons, for example, that Filipe Corcinio couldn't possibly have succeeded in the front line at Barcelona when they had veteran Messi and veteran Suarez. You needed to have someone who could have the ball in front of them just to stretch the play.
And Corcinio was yet another one who wanted the ball to feet. So Paz, assuming that he's fit, he might get moments...
but so far they've found it hard it could be his time I wonder if his time is going to be after the World Cup when Messi is gone but someone who certainly fits in his category he's only had a brief spell at Brighton Valentin Barco who what is he is he a left back no he's not really a left back he likes to play from left back rather than at left back good one on one can play either flank can play through the middle he could be the kind of joker off the pack figure that they unleash off the bench
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