Argentina were left red-faced on Tuesday (November 22) after suffered a shock defeat against Asian side Saudi Arabia in the FIF World Cup 2022 group stage opener. The defeat leaves them in a vulnerable position and will probably have to win their remaining two matches to guarantee progress in the knockout stage. So, with one the of tournament favourites now on the brink of catastrophe, the big question is can Lionel Messi and Co still win the World Cup?
History is not on Argentina's side
Turning back the pages in a history book, Argentina will have an uphill task as only one nation has ever won the World Cup after losing their opening contest at the showpiece event. Messi and Co won't have any encouraging signs, but they still have all the tools in their arsenal to go all the way and capture glory.
Which is the only team to win the World Cup despite losing opening contest?
Lionel Messi won't have to go far to take inspiration to win a World Cup despite losing the opening match. Messi's then-clubmates Andreas Iniesta, Xavi, David Villa, Pedro, Sergio Busquets and now-clubmate Sergio Ramos won the FIFA World Cup despite losing their own match for Spain against Switzerland at the 2010 World Cup.
To date, Iker Casillas' side remains the only side to have won the FIFA World Cup after facing a shock early defeat. The 1-0 defeat for Spain at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on 16th June against Switzerland saw them give a reaction in the later stage.
Spain would then bounce back to win against Chile and Honduras to top the group and would later beat the likes of Portugal, Paraguay, Germany and Netherlands to go all the way.
Argentina to get inspirtion from 2018 campaign?
This is not the first time that Argentina have got off to a worse start to a World Cup campaign and made it to the knockout stage. In the 2018 World Cup, they headed into the final game of the group stage with just one point to their name. Needing a win in the final group match, they were four minutes away from elimination from the group stage, but Marcos Rojo's winner against Nigeria saw them through to the KO stage.
So a win in their second match at the FIFA World Cup would see them collect more points than they had in the 2018 group stage after matchday 2.
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What's left for Argentina in Group Stage?
As things stand, the two-time champions will play Mexico at the Lusail Iconic Stadium in Lusail, the same venue where they lost to Saudi Arabia. The contest will take place on Saturday (November 26).
Messi and Co will then shift their base to Doha at Stadium 974, where they will drop curtains on their group stage campaign against Poland. The match will have bearings on the qualification scenarios and will take place on Wednesday (30 November).
What happens if Argentina lose against Mexico?
If the South American giants end up on the losing side against Mexico on Saturday albeit of the result in the other group match, they will face elimination. So the remaining two matches are must-win contests for the former champions.
