Argentina, one of the giants of world football, have not been able to bring their A game in the South American World Cup qualifiers. They currently fifth in their group, and only four teams will gain an automatic entry for World Cup 2018. There is a serious need to take their game to another level when they face Uruguay in an all-important qualifier match at Estadio Centenario on Thursday.
This match is going to be of utmost importance to Uruguay as well. They are in fourth position, but their performances have gone downhill after a decent start. They have lost their last three matches and Argentina will be trying to make their life further difficult.
The home side will be hoping to see their number one forward Luis Suarez fit for the game. The Barcelona forward is in Uruguay's squad to face Argentina, but his recent knee injury could pose problems and one does not know if he will be fit for action.
"He is going to continue his recovery here and we'll see then. All this came as a consequence of the good relationship between the professionals of both medical teams and because the player showed some good signs in his recovery work," PA Sport quoted Oscar Tavarez as saying.
Irrespective of whether Suarez will start or not, Edinson Cavani is another superstar, who will be looking to score goals, and take responsibility up front. Can the PSG man do it all alone against a determined and hungry Argentina side?
Argentina will have their eyes on moving up the qualifiers table, which is only possible if they manage to beat Uruguay. It would be catastrophic for a football giant like Argentina if they fail to qualify directly, especially with the players they have on their side.
With the likes of Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero, Paulo Dybala and many other world-class players, they have a star-studded line-up capable of destroying any team in world football. However, these great individual players have not been able to perform as a collective unit at the top level of international football in the ongoing World Cup qualifiers
They have lost against teams such as Bolivia, Ecuador, which is not something one expects from a world-class team, ranked number three in the world. Argentina new coach, Jorge Sampaoli will be looking for a good start but is yet to confirm his starters.
"The team is not yet confirmed but we have different alternatives to play this very important match. This match against Uruguay, we've been working on it for some time. The idea to talk with every single player has to do with achieving a union before such an important match," Sampaoli said.
Where to watch live
Uruguay vs Argentina World Cup qualifiers is scheduled for 8 pm local time, 7 pm ET, 12 am BST and 4:30 am IST.
India: TV: Sony Ten 2. Live streaming: Sony liv
Argentina: Tyc Sports Argentina.
Uruguay: VTV Uruguay.
UK: N/A.
US: Bein Sports. Live streaming: beIN Sports Connect
Africa: SuperSport3 Africa. Live streaming: Super Sport Video
