Lionel Messi’s hat-trick in Argentina’s first match at
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Argentina are strong favourites in Texas today. Lionel Scaloni’s team are on an eight-game winning run, with their latest defeat against Ecuador in last September’s final, inconsequential, World Cup qualifier.
Slightly more off-radar, Ralf Rangnick and Austria produced a qualifying campaign that was almost as emphatic.
In a group with eventual qualifiers Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria collected 19 points and dropped just five. They scored 14 goals against San Marino alone and flat-track bully Marko Arnautovic scored six of those.
The 37-year-old is midway through a two-year contract at Serbian SuperLiga giants Red Star Belgrade, where his goalscoring record remains very respectable even as his availability has dwindled.
This is the third time these nations have met, and the first competitively. The most recent encounter was a 1-1 draw in 1990. Manfred Zsak and Jorge Burruchaga scored the goals as the reigning champions warmed up for the World Cup.
Austria, who face Argentina with the Albiceleste as holders again, and are underdogs on that basis, but gegenpressing godfather Rangnick can be expected to have a plan for Messi that Vladimir Petkovic, Algeria’s head coach, did not.
Argentina vs Austria: Group J
FourFourTwo’s prediction
Argentina 2-1 Austria
FourFourTwo predicts a tougher task for Scaloni’s world champions that ends with another historic day for his iconic skipper.
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