ZCZC
BSP-15
FBL-WC-ARG-FOCUS
Endless turmoil leaves Messi’s Argentina in disarray at World Cup
MOSCOW, June 22, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – The 2014 World Cup final in Brazil was
supposed to be Lionel Messi’s crowning moment, the chance for him to take his
place alongside Diego Maradona in Argentina’s pantheon of heroes.
Instead, defeat by Germany set in motion four years of chaos in the
international set-up that has brought one of the great footballing nations to
its knees and leaves the South Americans staring at a ignominious early exit
in Russia.
Barring an unlikely sequence of results, this gilded generation of
players looks like being forever remembered for a succession of bitter
defeats.
Argentina’s struggles in Russia should come as no surprise after their
pre-tournament preparations were wrecked by controversy and poor form,
coupled with a reliance on a top-heavy, limited squad.
They found themselves at the centre of an Israel-Palestinian spat over
the cancellation of a World Cup warm-up match following an unconvincing
qualifying campaign.
The game against Israel, planned to take place in Jerusalem, was called
off after a campaign by the Palestinians following its relocation from the
northern city of Haifa.
It meant they arrived in Russia with a 4-0 win against 104th-ranked
Haiti in May as their only outing since an ominous 6-1 loss to Spain in
March.
Argentina almost failed to qualify for the World Cup in the first place.
They were on the brink of missing out on the finals for the first time since
1970 before Messi’s hat-trick against Ecuador dragged them over the line.
The team have been undermined by a broader crisis afflicting the
Argentine game, tangled up with politics and a power struggle in the AFA
(Argentine Football Association) management that broke out in 2014.
The AFA was placed under administrative supervision in 2016, days before
the Copa America Centenario final, after being hit by corruption allegations
and rows over TV rights.
Former AFA head Luis Segura quit after he and six other AFA directors
were indicted on suspicion of embezzlement over the distribution of
broadcasting revenues.
Worse was to come as Messi abruptly announced his international
retirement following a penalty shootout loss to Chile, Argentina’s second
Copa America final defeat in two years, citing frustration at the way the
game was run in the country.
Former Barcelona boss Gerardo Martino promptly resigned as coach,
blaming power squabbles with the AFA, an organisation branded a “mafia” by
Diego Maradona, who pointed the finger at its late president, Julio Grondona.
Messi’s future became practically an affair of state when Argentina’s
President Mauricio Macri called on him to stay.
“Lionel Messi is the greatest thing we have in Argentina and we must
take care of him,” Macri said shortly after the player’s bombshell
announcement.
Martino’s replacement, Edgardo Bauza, ultimately helped convince Messi
to reverse his decision weeks later, the Barcelona star conceding his “love”
of his country was “too great”.
Bauza lasted less than year, jettisoned in April 2017 with Argentina
languishing outside the automatic qualification places soon after Claudio
Tapia was elected president as part of a leadership shake-up at the AFA.
Jorge Sampaoli, with the blessing of Messi, pleaded for patience as he
was drafted in as Argentina’s third coach in two years.
“We are starting a new era, we need to improve and consolidate an idea
and that takes time,” Sampaoli said after his appointment.
While an inspirational Messi clinched qualification in the dizzying
heights of Quito last October, the obvious fault lines were badly exposed in
an embarrassing 3-0 loss to Croatia on Thursday that leaves the team on the
brink of a World Cup exit.
“We lost very badly, they really humiliated us this time,” said 22-year-
old Joaquin, at a fanzone in Buenos Aires.
“I can’t remember a worse performance from us at a World Cup,” former
Argentina defender Pablo Zabaleta, who started the 2014 final, said in his
role as a pundit for the BBC.
“Everyone is so angry at home. They were really poor.”
Argentina must now beat Nigeria in their final Group D match and hope
other results go their way.
Messi’s failure to match the achievements of Maradona, who single-
handedly carried the team to victory in the 1986 World Cup, will otherwise
never be forgotten.
“Messi, who keeps winning for Barcelona, who continues to deliver
triumph after triumph for Barcelona, has given us nothing but defeats and
sadness,” said Miguel Angel Gutierrez, a 50-year-old Argentina supporter in
Buenos Aires.
BSS/AFP/SG/IJ/1650 hrs