It may have surprised most of us but Argentina have looked quite toothless up-front at this years World Cup. Apart from Lionel Messi, obviously, who has saved his nation in their first two fixtures.

Both Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain have struggled to make much of an impact so far in Brazil.

So with qualification already assured, it should be time for Alejandro Sabella to make a change to his frontline and bring in PSG star Ezequiel Lavezzi to try and add more chances for the squad.

For me, I’d drop Man City’s Aguero. He started the Iran and Bosnia matches and looked off pace in both and couldn’t make many chances, never mind putting any away. He suffered from hamstring and calf problems last season and doesn’t seem to have fully recovered from those injuries. A break in the Nigeria tie may be a blessing in disguise for the hitman as he waits for his first goal of the competition.

Unlike Higuain and Aguero, Lavezzi is more suited to playing second fiddle and supplying more for illustrious teammates. He does play in Paris with Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani after all.

His directness down the wings and ability to look up gives him an advantage. Against the Iranians, he helped turn the game in the favour of Argentina. It was his pass that set-up Lionel Messi’s winning goal. Don’t get me wrong, Messi’s own inspired first touch and gifted shot were superb but it was Lavezzi that gave him the ball and at the right time.

This is the twenty-nine year olds first World Cup and you could see he was itching to come on and prove his worth. Argentina need that determination and need a player capable of providing more ammunition for Messi and another partner, Aguero or Higuain.

Sabella wont get a better time in this tournament to at least try something new. Messi is a superb, world-class talent but surely they cannot rely on just him to get them to a World Cup final and to the glory of winning the thing!

It’s time for the rest of the squad to stand up and be counted. I believe Ezequiel Lavezzi is ready to step up to the plate and help take some of the load off of Lionel’s shoulders. But will Alejandro Sabella take the gamble?

Posted on June 25th, 2014 by scott
Filed under: Article, World Cup