Life without Lo Celso: Argentina needs dynamic solutions in Qatar

Photo: Mark Fletcher/MI News and Sport (Source: Alamy)

South American Champions. Decimators of European Holders. Undefeated in 36 games. Waltzing in Qatar with a team brimming with confidence, clarity and composure, Argentina found themselves in a rather unique position. Never before in the 21st century have they been considered one of the top title contenders in the biggest show on the planet. But their place among the favorites was challenged after Salem Al-Dawsari turned and smashed his way past two defenders at the edge of the box and found the best bins with the perfect deflection.

Saudi Arabia, playing in only their sixth FIFA World Cup final, stunned and shocked the South American champions into submission. The announced “contenders” had barely competed.

Barely three days after the start of the World Cup, everything is on deck for Lionel Scaloni's brigade. Argentina, of course, are used to that fight or flight mindset. In four of the five previous World Cups staged so far this century, they have never won their opening game of the tournament by a margin of more than one goal; and in Russia, Iceland grabbed the headlines after holding them to a 1-1 stalemate.

The result against Saudi Arabia, however, will take some getting used to, given the kind of form they had heading into Qatar. When manager Scaloni returns to the drawing board in his office after dealing with the emotional and rational repercussions of the defeat, he will continue to find the big hole circled three times in black marker - the spot on the left side in midfield where a certain Giovani Lo Celso should have been.

The World Cup continues to tease and taunt Lo Celso, who didn't feature for a single minute of his country's cataclysmic campaign in Russia in 2018. An automatic starter since then, his absence is a blow to the Argentina, and even though he may have a 'digital replacement' as Scaloni claims, 'at football level there is not' a perfect solution to this problem.

Lo Celso, with Rodrigo De Paul and Leandro Paredes in midfield, has been the beating heart of the Albiceleste in the Scaloni era since 2019. With Paredes at base, De Paul on the right and Lo Celso on the left, the Argentine midfielder uses flexibility in roles with and without possession and switches things up seamlessly. They share an obvious and inherent understanding of the spaces to occupy and exploit, easing the pressure on the centre-back duo of Cristian Romero and Nicolas Otamendi and allowing Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria to do what they do best in final. third of the land.

An agile, left-handed midfielder who essentially functions as a No.10 on the pitch for Argentina, Lo Celso's technical and creative abilities allow him to play between the lines and quite often in the left half-spaces and right, which directly influences the degree of freedom with which their chief playmaker Messi operates.

The 26-year-old attracts markers with the team's focal point in attack, Lautaro Martinez, who often ends up creating spaces for Messi to run into or exploit with incisive passes. He is also a more than capable dribbler and ball carrier which greatly eases the creative burden on Messi, allowing him to push further a...