As the enduring South American World Cup qualifying process draws to a close, football fans are left contemplating the possibility of a World Cup without Lionel Messi and Argentina.
A disparaging draw with Peru last week has left La Albiceleste desperately needing a victory over Ecuador tonight if they want to save their dwindling World Cup hopes.
Although Argentina have lost two out of their last three games in the Ecuadorian capital of Quito, Betway’s Alan Alger told SBC: “It’s still very likely they qualify, obviously. A win guarantees at the very least a play-off against New Zealand for which they’d be very strong favourites over two legs.
“If they win and Brazil don’t lose at home to Chile they qualify automatically. There are a few other scenarios that a draw will also see them qualify automatically.There doesn’t appear too much motivation for Ecuador who have lost their last five qualifiers.
“If they somehow miss out I would think the front four or five will shorten a spot or two with one of the half dozen serious contenders for the tournament missing. Absorbing the percentage of their current price.”
Jorge Sampaoli’s side are currently 10/1 outsiders to go one step further in Russia next Summer, then they did at Brazil in 2014, where they suffered an excruciating extra time final defeat at the hands of Mario Götze and Germany.
Furthermore, if Argentina make it to Russia, at the age of 30 it maybe Messi’s last chance to capture international honours, something that Alger anticipates will lead to their misfiring qualifying campaign becoming a distant memory for punters.
Alger added that: “We feel most punters will have forgotten the qualifying process by the time the tournament is near approaching and still be backing Argentina because of the Messi factor regardless of their current struggles.”
