2018 World Cup Qualifying – Messi Returns for Argentina against Chile

Argentina (+140) at Chile (+200), Draw (+210)

A rematch of last year’s Copa America final will pit Argentina against Chile at the National Stadium in Santiago tonight (6:30 PM Eastern). This time, there’s no trophy on the line, but there’s still a lot at stake as both sides need to move up CONMEBOL’S 2018 World Cup qualification standings.

Chile ended up winning the 2015 Copa America via penalties (0-0), denying Argentina of their first championship in 23 years.  However, a lot has changed in a year.

Chile are now led by manager Juan Antonio Pizzi, who has huge shoes to fill after the departure of Jorge Sampaoli. Pizzi doesn’t have a great resume; in fact, he hasn’t stayed with a team for more than one year. (How he landed the Chile gig is a bit of a mystery.)

The top four teams from the CONMEBOL qualifiers will automatically earn a spot in the World Cup field, while the fifth-place side will have to go through the Inter-Confederation Playoffs to earn a berth.

Surprisingly, the Chileans sit fifth after four matches with seven points (2-1-1). They’re level in goal differential, but their seven goals against are tied for worst among the ten teams. Even more shockingly, Argentina have fared worse; they have won just one of their four games (1-2-1) and their five points have them sixth in the table.

The Argentine’s struggles are a little less shocking when you remember that Lionel Messi missed the first four fixtures with a knee injury. But, Messi or no Messi, losing at home to Ecuador still shocked the national public.

Luckily for Argentineans the world over, Messi will be back in the starting lineup tonight. However, midfielder Javier Mascherano will miss the game due to suspension. Mascherano is Argentina’s key in the midfield, playing a solid defensive game that allows his teammates to remain aggressive on the attack.

Both teams have issues going into this meeting; the Chileans don’t know how the team will respond to newcomer Pizzi while the Argentineans are still struggling to master the systems of manager Gerardo Martino.

Pick: Draw (+210).

(Photo credit: By Jimmy Baikovicius Flickr: [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.)