Lionel Scaloni slams FIFA over World Cup final training
Luis de la Fountain and Lionel Scaloni (Photo by Lars Baron, Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni has hit out at FIFA for forcing his team to train at an unfavourable time for him and his players ahead of the World Cup final.
Scaloni’s side take on Spain in tomorrow’s big game as they look to retain the trophy they won in Qatar in 2022, but it seems the manager is concerned at the European giants having the edge due to the less than ideal preparations for his side.
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It’s sure to be a close game between two superb sides, so any small detail could swing things in one team’s favour, with Scaloni clearly concerned that he hasn’t had a proper training session with his team.
Lionel Scaloni’s complaint about “strange” FIFA request
Speaking at a press conference ahead of the World Cup final, Scaloni hit out at FIFA for their scheduling that meant his players only had a brief session in the strong heat.
| Argentina’s run to the final | They will oppose | Result |
| Group J – matchday one | Algeria | 3-0 |
| Group J – matchday two | Austria | 2-0 |
| Group J – matchday three | Jordan | 3-1 |
| Round of 32 | Cape Verde | 3-2 (AET) |
| Round of 16 | Egypt | 3-2 |
| Quarter-final | Switzerland | 3-1 (AET) |
| Semi-final | England | 2-1 |
“We’re just now resting because we arrived last night around 11.00,” the 48-year-old said.
“Today they forced us to train at a time we didn’t want.
“But with the press conference and everything, we had to do a strange, quick training session, and we hardly got to try anything out.
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“We are focused on rest and based on that we will see how they arrive, because there are players who are not at 100%.
“We will evaluate how they are. We play thinking about ourselves, but being mindful of the good things that the opponent has.”
| Spain’s run to the final | They will oppose | Result |
| Group H – matchday one | Cape Verde | 0-0 |
| Group H – matchday two | Saudi Arabia | 4-0 |
| Group H – matchday three | Uruguay | 1-0 |
| Round of 32 | Austria | 3-0 |
| Round of 16 | Portugal | 1-0 |
| Quarter-final | Belgium | 2-1 |
| Semi-final | France | 2-0 |
It’s not clear what exactly went wrong here for Argentina, and perhaps it’s not even entirely true, and could be an attempt from Scaloni to play mind games with Spain.
Argentina beat England to make the final, while Spain triumphed over France. The final will take place at 8pm BST tomorrow, while England and France meet in the third place playoff this evening at 10pm BST.
