Will Argentina and Brazil Compete in Semifinals?

Of the six Latin American countries that qualified for the Qatar 2022 World Cup, only two were able to advance from the group stage to the knockout round: Argentina and Brazil. And both teams have managed to win these matches and position themselves in the quarterfinals.

Will they reach the semifinals or even lift the winning cup? Check here some predictions that play in their favour. 

In the first round there were six Latin American teams: Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico and Uruguay. And for those who have their hearts divided between their home country and that of their ancestors, the United States was also on the list. Only in one of the groups did two Latin American countries have to face each other: in the C group, where Argentina ended up beating Mexico, eliminating them from the World Cup.

While Argentina, Brazil and the United States made it to the knockout stage, the latter did not manage to pass to the quarterfinals, as they were defeated 3 to 1 by Poland. The two South American teams, however, did. In addition to Argentina and Brazil, Croatia, England, France and the Netherlands made it to the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, along with the United States, Australia, Japan, Poland, Senegal and South Korea have also been eliminated.

WHICH TEAMS ARE PLAYING WORLD CUP QUARTERS?

This Friday, December 9th, the Brazilian team will face Croatia and, a few hours later, the Argentine team will play against the Netherlands. On Saturday, December 10th, Morocco (who have reached the quarterfinals for the first time in history) will play against Portugal and France and England will compete a couple hours after that.

The result of these four matches will define who will make it to the semifinals, which will be held on Tuesday, December 13th and Wednesday, December 14th. For now, the predictions are tilted slightly in favor of Argentina in the match against the Netherlands, and quite in favor of Brazil against Croatia. If those expectations are met, Argentina and Brazil could face each other on Tuesday, December 13th, in the semifinals.

ARGENTINA VS. BRASIL: WHO IS BETTER?

Surely, both players and fans remember that the last time the two teams faced each other was in the 2021 Copa America, when Argentina beat Brazil, which was the host country of the competition, in the final 1-0. In fact, for many soccer fans, that championship was a turning point for the Argentine team, which up to that moment hadn’t been achieving favorable results in any of the most important tournaments and cups. 

In the World Cups, Argentina and Brazil have faced each other four times. The first was in Germany in 1974, when the Brazilian team won 2-1. The second, in 1978, when Argentina was the host, and the match ended 0-0. The third, in Spain, in 1982, when Brazil scored three goals and Argentina only one (and Diego Maradona was sent off). And the last one, in 1990, in Italy, when the Argentines triumphed 1-0.

This means that 32 years have passed since both teams faced each other in a World Cup. Many fans are anxiously waiting for Qatar to give the two South American juggernauts a chance to play against one another again, in the semi-finals and, of course, in the final.

The match to determine which team will finish third in Qatar 2022 is scheduled to take place on Saturday, December 17th. And on Sunday the 18th the highly anticipated final match will be played, with the winner proudly lifting the cup for their homeland. Will that winner be a Latin American country? It very much may be!