Tag: Maradona

A Beginners Guide to Football Teams in Buenos Aires

Flags swirl, banners fly, balloons reach high into the clear Buenos Aires sky. The communal voice of 50,000 of Argentina’s most fanatic fans overwhelm Boca Junior’s Bombonera stadium. Shirts are swung, songs screamed out. Frenzied fans let off fire crackers and fireworks. On the east stand drums beat and horns blast, while above them the outnumbered enemy, dressed in the red and white jerseys of River Plate, try their best to drown out the Boca crowd.

September 10th, 2014

5 (Honest) Reasons Why Argentina Could Win the World Cup

So… will they, won’t they? They are, and always have been, one of the best football teams in the world. Of that no one has any doubt. They had Maradona as a player (good), they had Maradona as a manager (bad), and they have Messi. Messi! At the 2014 World Cup, what could possibly go wrong?

May 29th, 2014

2011 Copa America: What’s Happened So Far

Two games into the 2011 Copa América, and things aren’t looking good for the host country. An astonishing one-one draw with Bolivia (Bolivia!) was followed by a nil-nil result against Colombia (Colombia!). Eek.

July 8th, 2011

Lionel Messi – Argentina’s Footballing Hero

We’ve waxed lyrical about Lionel Messi on the Real Argentina before. In fact we were so gushing about him, now looking back at the series of World Cup posts, we noticed that we even included an exclamation mark. An exclamation mark! Ye gods! Is it any coincidence that Messi’s surname forms most of the word Messiah?

December 31st, 2010

2010 World Cup Results: Argentina Loses 0-4 to Germany, Ending 2010 World Cup Football Bid

Maradona Argentina Germany World Cup 2010 Football

It wasn’t supposed to end like this. Argentina weren’t supposed to crash out in the quarter finals. Maradona was going to run around the Obelisco in downtown Buenos Aires…naked. It was supposed to be glorious. Well, maybe not the last bit.
On Saturday evening, the usual hectic, thrashing, fun-loving Buenos Aires was silent. Even the taxis appeared to be going slow. ‘It was like a cemetery,’ a friend said. Argentina were out of the World Cup too early, and they were beaten too easily by what was thought to be a young, inexperienced German side…

July 6th, 2010

2010 World Cup Results: Argentina 3-1 Mexico

Argentina-World-Cup-Football-Mexico-Messi

Ah. Yes. This is football. Football, they say, is more than just a game. Put two fiery Latin sides into the equation and you have 90 minutes of talent and controversy, passion and goals.
By half time in Argentina’s Round-of-16 match versus Mexico, Maradona was breaking up an argument (really) as the frustrated Mexicans lost their temper. Why the frustration? Where to start…

June 30th, 2010

South America’s World Cup!

This is South America’s World Cup. Of the eight groups in the World Cup, Uruguay and Argentina have been crowned first stage winners. As it stands Chile, Paraguay and Brazil are at the top of their groups. Of the two central American teams only Honduras will bow out, with Mexico qualifying in second place. By contrast, the European powerhouses: Germany, France, Italy, Portugal and England have all had stuttering starts, surprising the pundits.

June 25th, 2010

Messi and Maradona Lead Argentina to 4-1 Victory Over South Korea in World Cup Football

Argentina Football Messi South Korea World Cup

There’s a distinct danger this post will turn into an ode* to Messi, but oh what a player! We’ve since learned that South Korean, Chu-young, who scored an own goal in the match, has an IQ of 150. But it was the footballing genius of Messi that led Argentina to a convincing 4-1 victory over South Korea. And he didn’t even score a goal. The honours were left to Higuaín, who scored the first hat-trick of the tournament. And in the list of Argentine players, I’d put him behind Di Maria and Tevez, perhaps even Heinze, in the man-of-the-match stakes. It demonstrates the attacking depth of Maradona’s team…

June 18th, 2010

2010 World Cup Results: Argentina 1-0 Nigeria

Argentina Nigeria World Cup 2010 Messi

The Argentines are a gregarious bunch. They sing, they dance, they wave their hands in the air like they just don’t care. In the stands during Argentina’s opening World Cup football game against Nigeria, blue and white dominated. Flags, often painted in support of their home teams (I saw Huracan, Velez Sarsfield, Independiente), were hung from the balconies, while the fans swung their shirts, oblivious to the cooling desert evening. By the dug out, Maradona was almost as entertaining as he once was on the pitch…

June 14th, 2010