playing time, kilometers traveled, rest… Who is the most tired before the final?
With no sick players in their ranks, unlike the French they faced on Sunday, the Argentinians spent more time on the pitch as they had to play extra time in the quarters. Physical information that could count for the World Cup final.
“We were knocked out after the match. We ran a lot, the competition was long, there were many matches where we played very intensively because it was the World Cup. The England then Morocco sequence took a physical toll, but we will recover well with the squad we have.” That is what we wish for the Blues. Because Aurélien As Tchouaméni admitted after Wednesday’s 2-0 semi-final victory, they had to draw their reserves to qualify to face Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the final.A month into the heart of the season, bodies are starting to wear down seriously.
In addition to accumulated fatigue, some fell ill, victims of the flu syndrome that ruled Dayot Upamecano and Adrien Rabiot out of the match against Morocco in recent days. As revealed by RMC Sport, Raphaël Varane and Ibrahima Konaté have caught cold in turn. Ahead of Sunday’s shock, recovery is the watchword in the ranks of France and Argentina, especially for those who have been heavily chained since the start of this World Cup. Already important at 22, Madrid’s Aurélien Tchouameni is the most in-demand player with 501 minutes played on Qatar’s turf.
The trio of Martinez-Otamendi-Messi played everything
Followed by Kylian Mbappe (478 minutes), Antoine Griezmann (467), Hugo Lloris (450), Theo Hernandez (438), Raphael Varane (406), Ousmane Dembele (393), Adrien Rabiot (388), Olivier Giroud (379), Jules Kounde (361) and Dayot Upamecano (360). Behind the regulars, only four substitutes have passed 100 minutes of playing time: 102 for Randal Kolo Muani, 119 for Kingsley Coman, 202 for Youssouf Fofana and 286 for Ibrahima Konate. The turnover on the Argentine side was slightly higher, but three men played 570 minutes: goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, manager Nicolas Otamendi and obviously Lionel Messi, the captain and guide of this Albiceleste.
These three chief executives never left. Even in overtime against the Netherlands in the quarter. Lionel Scaloni, Rodrigo De Paul (498 minutes), Nahuel Molina (477), Enzo Fernandez (444), Alexis Mac Allister (435), Cristian Romero (427) and Julian Alvarez (362) are other soldiers who dispatched Lautaro Martinez quickly. he did not spare his efforts on the bench. But they are ready for the final battle. “We are making great sacrifices. We played extra time in the previous match (unlike France, editor’s note) and today there was fatigue. We will look for our strength in unknown places,” said Lionel Messi after 3:0. to Croatia in the semi-finals. Like France, Argentina has learned to control its matches.
Marathon runner Rabiot
According to the statistics compiled by FIFA, these two countries are among the least and most intensive runners in this world cup. Argentinians average 107.7 kilometers per 90 minutes. Mexicans (107.5 km) and Ecuadorians (105.4 km) are ahead of them in this classification. The Blues travel an average of 109.1 kilometers per game. Sprints are also not the specialty of the two finalists. The Americans averaged 630 points per game, while the French and Argentines averaged 489 and 473, respectively. Individually, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi are the least run of the two teams’ outfield players.
The two PSG forwards cover an average of 8.4 kilometers per game. Conversely, Adrien Rabiot is the top runner (11.7 km/90 minutes). Enzo Fernandez (11.6), Antoine Griezmann (11.5) and Aurelien Tchouamen (11.4) are closely following the “Juventus” midfielder from Turin, whom Didier Deschamps hopes will recover before the final. Julian Alvarez, he clearly doesn’t want to choose between a marathoner and a sprinter. Manchester City’s big hope (age 22) is one of the top runners (averaging 11 kilometers per game), but he is also one of the top runners (70.6 per 90 minutes).
