Argentina vs Switzerland is all set to bring an exciting FIFA World Cup clash at the Kansas City Stadium for the first time in 12 years. The last time they faced each other was in 2012 for an international friendly. The Argentine squad, which didn’t have a good outing in the first half of the last two matches, will try to bring the tempo they were missing into their gameplay. On the other hand, Switzerland will be looking forward to embracing the momentum they have. After the Egypt match, Argentina faced a brutal controversy for controversial decisions made by the referee.

Addressing the matter to the press, the Argentine manager, Lionel Scaloni, said, “In a way, as you rightfully pointed out, it’s used to show the players that there are people who don’t want Argentina to win. But that’s normal, just like there will be people who don’t want another national team to win. The thing is, we might have a lot more people who don’t want us to win because we won the last one and, well, we take that into account. And yeah, it gets to the players.”

Argentina vs Switzerland: Head-to-Head record

Argentina and Switzerland have met seven times in international football, with Argentina holding the upper hand. Their most memorable clash came in the 2014 FIFA World Cup Round of 16, when Argentina secured a 1-0 extra-time victory thanks to Ángel Di María’s winner, assisted by Lionel Messi.

Messi also starred in a 2012 international friendly, scoring a brilliant hat-trick as Argentina defeated Switzerland 3-1. The teams played out 1-1 draws in friendlies in 2007 and 2005, producing closely contested encounters. Argentina also claimed a 2-0 friendly win in 1984 before cruising to a 5-0 victory in 1980, a match in which Diego Maradona found the net. Their earliest World Cup meeting came during the 1966 tournament, where Argentina earned a comfortable 2-0 group-stage win. Across these seven meetings, Argentina have won five matches and drawn two, remaining unbeaten against Switzerland while producing several memorable performances led by legends Maradona and Messi.

Playing XI for today’s match

Argentina starting 11

(4-4-2, right to left): 23. E. Martínez (GK) — 26. Molina, 13. Romero, 6. Li. Martínez, 3. Tagliafico — 5. Paredes — 7. De Paul, 20. Mac Allister — 24. E. Fernández — 10. Messi, 9. Alvarez.

Switzerland starting 11

(4-2-3-1, right to left): 1. Kobel (GK) — 6. Zakaria, 4. Elvedi, 5. Akanji, 13. R. Rodriguez — 8. Freuler, 10. Xhaka, 15. D. Sow — 22. F. Rieder, 7. Embolo, 11. Ndoye.

With the must-win game set to bring in so much attention, both teams will look forward to embracing the crucial encounter to stay alive in the World Cup-winning race.