The time has come for the two giants of South American football – Brazil and Argentina – to lock horns in the CONMEBOL section of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification process.
As we head into Matchday 6, Argentina find themselves at the summit of the 10-team group – two points clear of second-placed Uruguay.
#Eliminatorias Información para la prensa sobre el retiro de credenciales para el partido entre #Brasil y @Argentina.📝 https://t.co/TtLT7SZ8GZ pic.twitter.com/hYPVonwZBQ— 🇦🇷 Selección Argentina ⭐⭐⭐ (@Argentina) November 19, 2023
#Eliminatorias Información para la prensa sobre el retiro de credenciales para el partido entre #Brasil y @Argentina.📝 https://t.co/TtLT7SZ8GZ pic.twitter.com/hYPVonwZBQ
Meanwhile, the Brazilians occupy fifth place following a below-par start to the campaign, meaning they trail their bitter rivals by five points in the standings.
Brazil kicked off their campaign in customary fashion, thrashing Bolivia 5-1 before defeating Peru 1-0. But it’s been all downhill since then.
After drawing the Venezuela and losing to Uruguay in October, the Brazilians suffered a 2-1 defeat against Colombia last time out.
Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli put the visitors ahead inside four minutes, but a second-half brace from Liverpool’s Luis Diaz flipped the game on its head.
All of a sudden, the five-time World Cup winners find themselves on a three-game winless run with plenty of work to do in order to turn things around.
As for Argentina, they won each of their opening four qualifiers before suffering a 2-0 defeat against Uruguay last time out.
Following clean-sheet victories over Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay and Peru, the reigning World Cup champions were humbled by the Uruguayans on Friday.
Despite racking up 64% possession and 12 shots on home soil, the Argentines were unable to prevent goals from Barcelona’s Ronald Arujo and Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez.
It is important to remember, however, that Argentina have lost just one of their previous 15 matches across all competitions.
Head-to-head: Brazil have failed to win any of their last three meetings with Argentina, suffering 1-0 defeats in 2019 and 2021 before drawing 0-0 last time around.
The old foes have faced each other on 113 occasions over the years. Brazil have claimed 46 victories, while Argentina have registered 41 wins.
Team news: Real Madrid duo Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo should lead the line for Brazil, with Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson starting between the sticks.
Meanwhile, Lionel Messi will aim to mark his 180th appearance for Argentina with his 107th international goal.
While Argentina will be looking to extend their lead at the summit of the standings, Brazil will be eager to end their winless run.
With that in mind, Forebet predicts that Brazil and Argentina will play out a tense low-scoring draw at the Maracana.