Lionel Messi will play for Argentina in the World Cup. REUTERS See more of our coverage in your search results.
Add The New York Post on Google Lionel Messi is expected to play for Argentina in their World Cup debut against Algeria in Group J.
This was far from a slam dunk after Messi pulled himself out of the last game of Inter Miami’s season and later reported a hamstring injury, though it appears to be mild.
Messi is expected to start for the defending World Cup champion, which comes in as a -230 favorite on the three-way moneyline against Algeria.
We’re expecting a fair amount of offense in this match, with the total expected goals scored coming in at 2.5.
Algeria comes in with a squad rated 28th in the world and fourth among African continent teams, while Argentina comes in as the world’s No. 1 overall team.
Led by Messi alongside his counterparts, Lautaro Martínez and Rodrigo De Paul, Argentina has what it takes to blow anyone out of the water in this tournament.
They are the clear favorites to win Group J, and they should be.
Algeria is a solid squad in its own right, but it is overly reliant on a few players, namely Ismaël Bennacer of A.C. Milan and its captain, Riyad Mahrez.
Algeria’s Ismael Bennacer plays against Argentina on Tuesday. REUTERS Outside of those players, you’re not looking at much on the pitch for Algeria. While their coach, Vladimir Petković, is highly respected for his work with team Switzerland in the 2020 Euro when they famously defeated France, Algeria will be overmatched here.
Still, I lean towards an under 2.5 bet on this match.
Both teams can fall into a defensive battle in the midfield, and I don’t love the idea of either team getting and running too much on the wings.
Algeria is a possession-oriented team and will need to limit turnovers if they hope to hold Argentina off the scorecards and perhaps steal a point or two on Tuesday.
THE PLAY: Under 2.5 total goals (-106, BetRivers)
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