The great South American classic will define the world champion: this Sunday from 12 at the Humo Arena Stadium in Tashkent (televised by Public TV), Argentina and Brazil will compete in the final of the Uzbekistan 2024 Fustal World Cup, in a duel between the two best teams of the contest, with the special seasoning that they know each other by heart and accumulate a rivalry that grows with each confrontation.
At this point, there is no doubt that the Argentine National Team is a true power in the discipline, having reached the third consecutive final. In 2016 they became champions by beating Russia 5-4 in the final, while in 2021 they took second place by losing 2-1 to Portugal in the definition. Therefore, it is no coincidence that the team led by Matías Lucuix is faced with the great chance of winning the second crown for the country.
Of course, the job will not be easy for the Albiceleste team: opposite will be Brazil, the greatest historical power in the sport and five-time world champion. In the last 10 years, both teams faced each other 25 times, with eight Argentine victories, 13 Brazilian victories and four draws. The last two matches were for the Canarinha, but the albicelestes won the most important match in recent years, 2-1 in the 2021 World Cup semi-final.
To reach the final, Argentina beat France in the semifinal by a very tight 3-2 that was resolved in the last second. Lucuix’s team was ahead on the scoreboard on two occasions with goals from Kevin Arrieta, from a penalty, and Ángel Claudino, but the French tied it twice. And when it seemed that they were going to extra time, Arrieta, with a sixth foul shot, sealed the Albiceleste victory to reach the definition. The Brazilians also suffered to get their ticket, as they beat Ukraine 3-2.
The two finalists also reached the final undefeated. In Group C, Argentina beat Ukraine 7-1, beat Afghanistan 2-1 and closed the zone with a 9-5 victory over Angola. Already in the round of 16, Lucuix’s team beat Croatia 2-0, while in the quarterfinals they beat Kazakhstan 6-1, which had just eliminated the champion Portugal. On the other hand, the Brazilians were part of Group B, which they passed without problems by beating Cuba 10-0, Croatia 8-1 and Thailand 9-1. In the round of 16 they had to face Costa Rica, whom they also beat 5-0, while in the quarterfinals they suffered more to beat Morocco 3-1. With this background, there is no doubt that this is a dream final, in which Argentina has glory within reach.
