The Selecao barely managed to win their final World Cup warm-up match against Egypt. After early mistakes and an injury, Endrick led Brazil to a 2-1 victory. Meanwhile, Argentina celebrated a comfortable 2-1 victory—without superstar Messi.
Four key warm-up matches took place on Saturday night ahead of the World Cup opener: Five-time world champions Brazil faced Egypt, who are also competing in the World Cup; Curacao, Germany’s opening-match opponent; and Turkey all played their final warm-up matches before the tournament kicks off, while defending champions Argentina took the field for the penultimate time before the World Cup.
The Selecao kicked things off at midnight Central European Time, facing Egypt in Cleveland, Ohio. While Salah initially started on the bench for the Pharaohs, Carlo Ancelotti fielded the same starting lineup for Brazil that is expected to take the field against Morocco this coming weekend (Sunday, 12 a.m. CEST). Or at least was supposed to: Right-back Wesley had to leave the field injured after just 17 minutes. It seems doubtful whether the AS Roma player, who left the field in tears, will be fit in time for the World Cup opener.
By the time the 22-year-old was substituted, however, a lot had already happened: Just seven minutes in, the South Americans were celebrating an early lead after Bruno Guimaraes capitalized on the sluggishness of opponent Lasheen, stealing the ball from the Egyptian during a build-up and slotting it home for a 1-0 lead. However, the lead lasted only four minutes, as defensive leader Marquinhos, much like in the recent Champions League final with PSG, made a misplaced pass that Mostafa Ziko capitalized on to equalize (11th minute).
The difference-maker on this early Saturday evening (local time) was Endrick, currently on loan from Real Madrid to Olympique Lyon, who came on at halftime as one of eight substitutes and powerfully headed a Raphinha cross into the net (52′).
Argentina without Messi and Co.
Without Nico Paz, Leandro Paredes, and Julian Alvarez—who remain injured and were being rested ahead of the World Cup—Argentina took the field for its friendly against Honduras, a World Cup participant in 1982, 2010, and 2014. Consequently, it wasn’t yet the starting lineup that national team coach Lionel Scaloni fielded—especially since he also kept the now 38-year-old superstar Messi, who had also suffered a left thigh strain at the end of May, on the bench for the full 90 minutes.
So other players had to step up for the defending champions—and Inter Milan’s Lautaro Martínez did just that in the 37th minute with a penalty kick that gave his team the lead. The 28-year-old put in a solid performance overall and rewarded himself with the assist for Simeone’s goal that made it 2-0 (54th minute).
“Perhaps we could have done some things better, but as far as the team’s trademark—its identity—is concerned, I think it remains intact, and that’s the most important thing. That’s what matters—not losing that identity,” said Scaloni after the match, which was not yet the dress rehearsal ahead of the World Cup opener against Algeria (June 17, 3 a.m. CEST): On Tuesday night, the Albiceleste will face Iceland once more (3 a.m. CEST)
Curacao Struggles – Turkey Turns the Game Around
Germany’s opening opponent, Curacao (Sunday, 7 p.m. CEST), also won its final warm-up match, though it struggled for a long time against neighboring Aruba. It wasn’t until the 53rd minute that former Hoffenheim player Brenet gave them the much-needed lead against the 189th-ranked team in the FIFA World Rankings; Antonisse (68th), Comenencia (83rd), and J. Bacuna (90+1) then sealed the deal against the World Cup debutants.
Turkey, incidentally, also enjoyed a successful final warm-up match ahead of the World Cup. Against Venezuela, coach Vincenzo Montella’s team got off to a slow start and fell behind to a goal by Mendoza (13th minute); after Yilmaz equalized just before halftime (44th minute), substitute Akgün (54th minute) put his team on the path to victory with an assist from Arda Güler.