Day 19:-

Argentina vs. Switzerland:-





Yet another match of 120 minutes which could have gone either way had one team (or the other) done a thing or two differently!


There weren’t any significant tactical changes for either side, and as far as their line-ups were concerned, Lavezzi was the only man who started his first match at this WC; as Sergio Agüero has been ruled out of the competition due to injury.


The “big picture” of the game was drawn from the very first minutes as Argentina piled pressure on the Swiss, who were happily defending deep with almost 11 men behind the ball; waiting for counter-attacks once retaining possession from defensive zones.

Switzerland were constantly unable to hold onto the ball amidst the Argentinians’ pressing game, while they also often lost individual duels in midfield and in attacking areas.

Argentina were not threatening Switzerland’s goal properly; simply because they were focusing too much on attempting to get into the Swiss box from out wide and not trying to launch more attacks from central areas.

Switzerland, on the other hand, were not offering much in way of offensive moves for a while; as they were somewhat stuck in their midfield and unable to “kick” the momentum into high-gear!

That slowly began to change as Shaqiri found his way (more than once) through Argentina’s right defensive flank.

Meanwhile, Argentina were relying on aerial play from almost all areas of the final third; but their passing was not decisive and they were lacking a sense of aggressiveness and urgency.

It was a relatively very tactical first half, with the Swiss playing a compact and very organized game. They were, however, not committing enough bodies forward in their counter-attacks and kept losing possession cheaply due to some sloppy passing (Mehmedi was rather poor in attack!).

Argentina defended better than what was expected from them (based on their defensive displays in the group-stage); but they still seemed vulnerable on the flanks though. In attack, they were over-reliant on aerial balls and needed more urgency by engaging the Swiss defenders more and attempting to attack centrally via through balls on the ground.

The second half began by inheriting the first half’s tempo and rhythm; Argentina still being too slow in their build-up play and Switzerland still lacking precision in front of goal.

The Argentineans’ rather increased element of width in their offensive approach was somewhat of an obstacle for them in terms of reaching the Swiss goal; as Switzerland’s SBs were easily dealing with their play down either channel.

The Swiss were somehow slowing their own tempo when going on the counter due to a lack of physical presence up front (especially on the left where Mehmedi was not performing well in offense).

It took a while, but, eventually, Argentina began to find more and more spaces in the Swiss defense; but they were still pointlessly relying on aerial play and not providing enough urgency!

Switzerland were, at this point, very subdued in attack and unable to get proper passes forward.

As the half came to a close, the Argentineans started to play with more urgency, with Messi creating space for himself from which he would launch attacks once given the ball; but the team, as a whole, were missing that crucial final touch in the box.

Meanwhile, Switzerland did not launch a single attack during that period; allowing Argentina possession and somehow refusing to press them amidst some pretty static play to say the least!

It was a better second half from Argentina in attack as they eventually switched to a more central style of play; but they were undone by a lack of physical presence in the Swiss box from their main strikers.

Switzerland barely threatened Argentina’s goal and were too flat going forward, as well as lacking clear urgency on the break.

Extra-time began with the Swiss pressing higher up the pitch and not allowing Argentina the same ball possession they had enjoyed before.

However, the game’s tempo was subdued by the Argentinians as they passed the ball around; looking to avoid early exhaustion!

Neither team was risking too much, while both teams’ defenses were doing their jobs.

Switzerland were not committing any extra bodies forward and Argentina were not pressing them too much either; preferring to attack from deep areas.

The second half of extra-time saw Argentina go all-out in attack from the kick-off, as if they were trying to fully expend every remaining shred of energy left in them!

The Swiss were too slow on the break though and seemed out of options in attack.

At a time when both teams’ urgency of play seemed to significantly drop due to an almost tangible sense of fatigue, the unthinkable happened as Lichtensteiner (who was having a good game so far!) lost possession to Palacio in a crucial area!

Palacio then quickly passed the ball to Messi, and the Argentine captain went on one of his trademark dazzling runs towards the goal before playing Di María through on the right, who placed it low on the opposite side before a distraught Benaglio (who had an EXCELLENT game between the posts!).

The Swiss attempted to immediately throw bodies forward and almost got the goal they deserved had it not been for the Argentinian right post!

All in all, a somewhat deserved win for Argentina as they fully pressed on the pedal in that second half of extra-time. The Swiss were undone by a tiny lapse in concentration that lead to that fatal mistake; as, otherwise, they put in a very respectable performance.

It was a sad ending for them, and, truthfully, a very bitter way for Coach Hitzfeld to retire!


Man of the match: Lionel Messi: He had a good all-round game and did more than what was asked of him as he, yet again, lead his (rather underperforming) team to victory.