Brazil seeks respect if players dance after World Cup goals, says O’Neill
O’Neill, 34, has had a tumultuous year since he was named coach of the Australian national team in September. After his sacking during a 2-1 defeat by South Africa in January, he was handed a two-year contract with FIFA (Picture posed by Carlos Osorio)
Argentina have won just one game in the last 16 years under coach Jorge Sampaoli, but they have a great chance of doing so again if they can beat Peru next week.
Peru are playing their most important game of the qualifiers, and the only way they can do so is by going through Argentina and Colombia without ever losing.
The two sides are tied on four points, with a 4-1 aggregate, so the winner of the match will go through to the third round.
While Argentina’s hopes may be fading, they haven’t faced a stronger side at home than Peru in a long time, and they’ll need to deliver.
“It’s been almost a normal season for us,” said coach Jorge Sampaoli after his side beat Ecuador, 2-0 on Wednesday, courtesy of Andres Obando’s goal.
“We should be able to compete in every game. We have played well on different days, with different opposition.
“This is our ninth game in the last 12 days, and we just need to maintain this level.
“They are the type of team that we need to play to win,” he added.
If they can compete in these few games, they have an outside chance at progressing.
The last time Argentina won at home in a qualifier was in 1984. It took 20 years to win the next nine, until this year when they thumped Canada 4-0 on aggregate.
There have only been four other home qualifiers in the last seven years, so the opportunity is there.
‘We are not ready for it yet’
Sampaoli has already made a number of changes to his squad, adding some experience to the mix.
The team lost all three of its games against Argentina in the last round of