A legend always flavored by this extraordinary storyteller, who was also Diego Armando Maradonasays Diez paid an unforgettable compliment to his childhood idol Ricardo Bochini during the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. “Come in, teacher, we were waiting for you”Diego told Boce when he replaced Jorge Burruchaga in the semi-final against Belgium at the Estadio Azteca.
More than 40 years have passed since this scene, and a parallel can be drawn with Kansas City.. Teachers whom Skaloneta is looking forward to today: Emiliano Martinez th Rodrigo DePaultwo irreplaceable performers for Lionel Scaloni, who have not yet been able to find their best versions. Not with those special personalities that distinguish them. Will they go against Switzerland?
The drawing and Motorcito are a little off.. Perhaps they saved them for the most demanding games. But he never showed up at this World Cup Martinez’s face, full of confidence and some irritabilityneither eternal battles with rivals that characterize De Paul. It’s possible that you both haven’t reached your maximum level of confidence yet for various reasons. The 33-year-old goalkeeper from Mar del Plata arrived at the World Cup with a fracture in the ring finger of his right hand, and the goalkeeper, a native of Sarandi, arrived with some doubts about his level after playing in a lower league such as MLS. In any case, Scaloni’s confidence in them remains absolute: Dibu is the only player in the team who played every minute (480), and Rodrigo started in four of the five matches of the tournament.
“I feel like I can’t help anyone. I never had the feeling that I was returning home without being able to help the national team. In any case, I think my time will come.”– Dibu warned after the painful victory over Egypt.
Of course, Martinez cannot be trusted. True, he has not yet made any of those saves that are destined to go down in history. But his level was not low either: he had very good interventions against Austria and Cape Verde. Moreover, it is one of the greatest emblems of Skaloneta. With 64 appearances, he is the second most capped goalkeeper in the history of the national team, behind only Sergio Romero, who has 96. On the other hand, Martinez is known to have played a decisive role in four of Argentina’s victories: saving penalties against Colombia in the semi-finals of the 2021 Copa America, a memorable performance against the Netherlands in the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Qatar, a leading role in the unforgettable final against France. as well as a penalty shootout against Ecuador in the 2024 Copa America.
The feeling is that Deeb needs to believe in it again, to recapture that image of the invincible goalkeeper and that brash character that made him say: “Look how I eat you, brother” during the penalty shootout against Colombia. And the inevitable question: where were the goalie dances during the warm-up?
Something similar happens with Rodrigo De Paul: He no longer looks like that insufferable football player who fights with everyone. Such passivity of Motorcito is surprising, because he himself has admitted more than once that this is his fuel. “It often happens to me that I look for an enemy or a rival so that it doesn’t sound so bad. I try to argue to stay alert. And it is no longer because of “we want to win”, but because of “I want to defeat you”; I make it personal. Sometimes it happens that there is a dispute, and sometimes everything is there,” Rodrigo explained. And he added: “I always do it with great respect, so that it stays on the field. But in football the mental or psychological part is also important, sometimes even more than the legs. So, there are players who play very well with the ball, and, well, there you need to attack them from the other side. As long as everything is within the rules, everything is fine.”
De Paul started the tournament very well against Algeria, with his filtered pass to Lionel Messi opening the game. In his debut he received 8 in the rating Clarion. Later, however, he was kept out of the 5 against Austria, Cape Verde and Egypt – he was substituted in all three games – and was rested against Jordan.
The good news is that Skaloneta has already shown that they can move forward even without the best versions of two of their most determined players. The team always finds collective answers and maintains its identity. That’s why he finished in the top eight at the World Championships. But championships are usually defined by the details and appearance of those who matter. Against Switzerland, in another match with no room for error, Scaloni – and Argentina – will hope that Draw will feel invincible again and that De Paul will regain the fire that makes him the driving force of the team. Just as Maradona was waiting for Bochini, so the national team is waiting for its teachers.