Kempes compared his level in the 1978 World Cup with that of Maradona in 1986 and that of Messi in 2022: his blunt conclusion
The triumph of argentine nationwide workforce in his debut in the World Cup 2026 Not solely did he add factors in the desk, however he revived historic comparisons about the level of his figures and the collective high quality of the workforce. Mario Alberto Kempesemblem of the title in 1978, shared his view on the workforce’s current and made a profound comparability between totally different golden moments of the Albiceleste.
The former striker is at present in the United States experiencing the event from the inside and recounted how he’s going by means of the expertise: “At the moment I have gone to the opening of this World Cup in Mexico, the other days we were with Argentina and now we will go to Dallas to continue with the National Team”, shared Kempes in dialogue with DSports Radio FM 103.1. He additionally confessed a element of the premiere in opposition to Algeriathe place he coincided with different world title figures: “I was with the legends, there were three or four of us from ’78 and ’86, we were all”.
One of the attention-grabbing solutions left by the Matador It was linked to a historic comparability: “Could the Kempes of 78 have been close to the Maradona of 86 and the Messi of 2022 for the National Team?”they raised it.
Kempes was categorical in ruling out any direct equivalence. “I don’t think so, because there was no one to play alongside those two monsters.because they really made you embarrassed, because they are so intelligent that they don’t think about the play when they have the ball, but they already know what they are going to do for ten minutes.”
Kempes delved into the difference that separates the great geniuses from the rest: “You, you don’t know what you’re going to do. So, there are times when maybe with Diego, not with Messi, but with Diego I did have the opportunity to play. He carried the ball and of course, he tried to hit you and you ran and in the end, boom!, he hooked and you ran into vice.. And there were moments when he would raise his head, see you standing and give it to you, and you would stay standing, saying: ‘So, when is he going to decide? When I run and not when I am stopped.’ That’s why they are those phenomena that football gives and thank God we had them on our side.”.
From the journalistic desk, they as soon as once more insisted on the strategy: “You in that ’78 National Team, without Diego and without Messi, were the most important value that Argentina had.”
In this context, the man from Córdoba recalled his personal contribution in the conquest of ’78 and emphasised the worth of the group over individualities, differentiating his position from that of later stars. “The answer is maybe yes. In the first three games I didn’t score goals, in the other three games I scored four. But normally the figure who is named the best in the World Cup comes out in the finals. I was very lucky to be there, I say because they chose me, But if you don’t have the teammates I had next to you, that can’t be achieved alone, like what Diego did, like what Messi is doing.. The phenomena, and I don’t include myself there, win you games, the group wins you championships.”.
Regarding the efficiency of the National Team in the debut against AlgeriaKempes was glad with the workforce’s manufacturing and the management of Messi, writer of a hat-trick and applauded when leaving the discipline. “Messi gives him reasons for that, it’s not that he was the best in the world and he played in Kansas against Algeria and he spent 60 minutes and did nothing. No, he did everything, He had fun as he always knows how to have fun, as he is demonstrating now at Inter Miami and in Barcelona and in France”.
The historic scorer highlighted the bodily and psychological state of the Argentine captain: “I think who continues to have that spirit of competitiveness despite being 39 years old. He is standing better than ever because really when you are watching him live and direct, as they say, and you see the spaces he occupies and he is always alone because he is a very intelligent player, he does not need to run, walk the field and at the right moments give that kick that we are used to and then success is important.” He also added his amazement at Messi’s perception of the game: “What does not surprise me is the vision he has, the position he occupies looking for where the ball is or which teammate carries it and where it is placed. they can find better.”
Regarding the development of the match, Kempes stressed the importance of starting the tournament with a victory. “The first game, although I am going to say it, is redundant because in Qatar they lost the first game and then they became champions, it is normally the most difficult and if not ask Uruguayto Spainto all these great selections. If we go for ours, Ecuador, Paraguay. The first game is won. How? Whatever, because really winning gives you the possibility of the other two, not peace of mind, but with three points in your favor”.
Despite a few minutes of confusion after a disallowed goal against Algeria, the former striker considered that Argentine dominance was clear: “Argentina entered in the same way as if we were watching the final in Qatar with great enthusiasm, well prepared physically and mentally.playing in such a way that maybe he had a couple of minutes there when Algeria scored the goal and it was annulled, a couple of confusions that lasted, let’s say, ten minutes. Afterwards it was practically everything from Argentina.”
