For the first time in history, the reigning champions of South America and Europe will meet for the World Cup title as Argentina and Spain square off for the World Cup final on Sunday. It’s a matchup of Unai Simon and the best defense in the World Cup as Spain have allowed one goal in seven matches played, while Lionel Messi chases the Golden Boot with eight goals and four assists in the tournament.
It’s the perfect setup of what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object in a cup final. After the 80th minute of play, Argentina have scored nine goals while Spain have scored 11 during the entire tournament. Not that it’s Luis de la Fuente’s game to try and run up the score, but Spain’s best defense is their strength in possession, with Rodri keeping teams from countering them while Pedri and Fabian Ruiz pick out passes to push things forward.
It ensures that even when Spain aren’t at their best, they’re able to score at the World Cup, which has also shown in the fact that Lamine Yamal has only scored one goal while Nico Williams has only logged 63 minutes due to struggling with injuries, but thanks to players named Mikel, Spain have scored goals when it matters. Their two Mikels (Oyarzabal and Merino) have combined for seven goals, which is only one off Messi’s Golden Boot lead. It’s a good way to look at this final because only Oyarzabal is expected to start the match, while the entire Spain squad will be involved in everything that they do under de la Fuente.
Not to say that Argentina can’t play as a squad, but their attack is much more reliant on Messi’s magic than Spain are on a single player. The defense has struggled down the wings, and one of the best changes that Lionel Scaloni made in the semifinals against England was moving Rodrigo De Paul out of the XI in favor of Giuliano Simeone, which could persist during the final. These sides have been set in their ways during the World Cup, and having mostly healthy squads has helped their managers be able to select their top guys.
It’d be hard to expect Williams to jump into the starting XI, and there’s no reason to push him as Yamal and Alex Baena have done enough to start this match and tweak from there. But how could these teams expect to line up for the final on Sunday?
Predicted lineups
- Spain predicted XI: Unai Simon; Marc Cucurella, Aymeric Laporte, Pau Cubarsi, Pedro Porro; Fabian Ruiz, Rodri, Dani Olmo; Alex Baena, Mikel Oyarzabal, Lamine Yamal
- Argentina predicted XI: Emiliano Martinez; Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero, Lisandro Martinez, Nicolas Tagliafico; Enzo Fernandez, Alexis Mac Allister, Leandro Paredes, Giuliano Simeone; Lionel Messi, Julian Alvarez
How to watch Argentina vs. Spain
Date: Sunday, July 19 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
Location: MetLife Stadium — East Rutherford, N.J.
TV: Fox (Eng), Telemundo (Spa) | Live stream: Fubo (Try for free)
Odds: Spain +130; Draw +195; Argentina +275
