Argentina vs Egypt Predictions

Champions almost fell prey to the Blue Sharks

Argentina cruised through their group, but they didn’t have an easy time in the first knockout round. Cape Verde were stubborn opposition for the defending champions, twice pegging back Argentina in a 3-2 defeat.

Argentina wrapped up top spot in Group J with a game to spare, thanks to straightforward victories over Algeria and Austria, before a rotated side eased by Jordan. The bracket has broken kindly for them, as they’re set to avoid a fellow elite side until the quarter-finals at least.

We still don’t truly know what level the defending champions are playing at, but their issues against Cape Verde suggest they could toil against Egypt in the last 16.

Egypt should threaten going forward

Egypt have reached the second knockout round despite winning only one of their four matches so far. They’ve drawn with Belgium and Iran in their group, and they needed penalties to see off Australia in the last round. Their only victory came against the lowest-ranked side at the tournament, New Zealand.

However, Egypt do have an elite forward line, and their World Cup games so far have tended to be pretty open. Both teams have scored in each of their four matches at the tournament, and their final warm-up game saw them score in a defeat against Brazil.

Argentina have now failed to keep clean sheets in back-to-back matches, and they did offer up opportunities to Algeria in their opener.

Expect Messi to dazzle again

Lionel Messi has been fantastic for Argentina so far, netting seven times across his four appearances. He’s leading the way in the Golden Boot race, while he’s the top chance creator in the Argentine ranks with nine, three times as many as the next highest player.

Everything Argentina do runs through their talisman, and he has scored in nine of his last 10 matches for club and country, while chipping in with seven assists. Following that incredible run of form, it’s hard to look to anyone else in the anytime goalscorer market.