News of Dan Edwards

Dan Edwards

Tigre midfielder Sebastián Prediger (centre) celebrates after his side defeated River 2-1 in their Copa de la Liga Profesional quarter-final match at the Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires, on May 11, 2022.

Tigre stun River, but no justice for Defensa in Copa quarters

12-05-2022 00:38 Plenty of stories in the Copa de la Liga Profesional quarter-finals – none more so than Tigre's shock victory over River Plate in front of a bemused Monumental.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Much-maligned Copa de la Liga Profesional reaches decisive phase

06-05-2022 09:55 Two teams in each group are assured of their place already in the play-offs, while the remaining challengers must wait until Saturday or Sunday evening to find out whether they will be joining them in next week’s quarter-finals.

by Dan Edwards

Racing Club slumped to a 3-1 defeat to Peruvian side Melgar in the Copa Libertadores.

FOOTBALL IN SOUTH AMERICA

Inconsistency rules for Argentina’s clubs fighting on two fronts

29-04-2022 16:39 Aside from Estudiantes, it's been another week of mixed fortunes for Argentina’s top teams.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Battaglia’s days at Boca may already be numbered

22-04-2022 14:26 Results themselves do not appear to be at the core of Boca's malaise. In the Xeneize's case it seems to be a case of lacking both style and substance.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Gago takes Racing from strength to strength – and the top of the table

08-04-2022 23:40 Coach’s success in Avellaneda will heighten the clamour for him to take over at Boca should results continue to disappoint at La Bombonera in the coming months.

by Dan Edwards

The Argentina line-up for the recent World Cup qualifier against Chile, pictured at the Estadio Unico Madre de Ciudades stadium in Santiago del Estero, Argentina, on June 3, 2021.

Qatar 2022 World Cup

Pieces are falling into place for in-form Argentina ahead of Qatar 2022

01-04-2022 16:39 The Albiceleste is united, playing spectacular football at times and by all accounts having a great time doing it, and that is the sentiment that must be transmitted from here until the World Cup itself.

by Dan Edwards

Lionel Messi and his Argentina teammates warm up during a training session in Ezeiza on March 23, 2022, ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifier against Venezuela to be held on March 25.

INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL

Plenty of reasons to tune in for Argentina's clashes with Venezuela and Ecuador

25-03-2022 10:37 While in a competitive sense Argentina's next two World Cup qualifiers are next to meaningless, the clashes against Venezuela and Ecuador this week are of intense symbolic significance.

by Dan Edwards

It's Superclásico time – River Plate v Boca Juniors

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Superclásico to take centre-stage as derby weekend arrives

18-03-2022 10:56 A fine weekend of football is upon us as Argentina prepares for a tense 48 hours of rivals clashing in clásicos.

by Dan Edwards

Alejandro Garnacho and Luka Romero are two of the youngsters called up to the latest Albiceleste squad.

FOOTBALL

Youngsters draw the eye in latest round of Albiceleste call-ups

11-03-2022 10:54 Garnacho, Romero, Carboni, Geralnik, Paz and Soulé – are these the names of Argentina’s next superstars?

by Dan Edwards

Marcelo Bielsa has left Leeds United after three-and-a-half years in Yorkshire.

FOOTBALL

Bielsa leaves Leeds after a truly transformative journey

04-03-2022 12:41 Veteran Argentine coach fired by Premier League side after falling victim to awful streak of four consecutive heavy losses – but what a ride it was for fans in West Yorkshire.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL & POLITICS

‘This is a nightmare’ – ‘Terrified’ Argentine footballers flee Ukraine

25-02-2022 13:52 As much as many would like to deny the fact, football can rarely stay separated from politics.

by Dan Edwards

Plenty to report as football returns from its summer holidays

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Plenty to report, on and off the field, as football returns

18-02-2022 20:31 River and Boca bounce back after hiccups, 'Pulga' shines again and trouble in the stands… just another day at the office for this most unpredictable, chaotic, infuriating and enchanting of leagues.

by Dan Edwards

Thursday's victory over Chile was the 28th consecutive match the Albiceleste have negotiated without defeat; more than any other nation in the world right now.

INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL

Argentina’s Scaloneta marches on, even without its Lionels

28-01-2022 15:41 Thursday's victory over Chile was the 28th consecutive match the Albiceleste have negotiated without defeat; more than any other nation in the world right now.

by Dan Edwards

Juan Fernando Quintero and Dario Benedetto: Returning heroes.

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Returning heroes delight fans of Boca and River, but patience is required

21-01-2022 02:47 Dario Benedetto and Juan Fernando Quintero return home. If one of the Superclásico pair was to repatriate one of their past heroes, it made perfect sense for the other to follow suit. Nostalgia, though, can be a dangerous drug.

by Dan Edwards

The draw, a rather shadowy affair, did leave the more suspicious-minded wondering just how above-board the mysterious draw really was.

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Mysterious draw caps off another round of football power politics

14-01-2022 03:29 The body responsible for organising Argentina's top flight revealed Tuesday that despite its rather misleading name, the Copa Liga Profesional, which will run during the first half of 2022, would in fact be nothing of the sort.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Covid again set for starring role as new season draws closer

07-01-2022 22:51 While beachgoers line up in their droves to get tested and take out their sweaty frustrations on medical personnel, though, footballers are conspicuous by their absence.

by Dan Edwards

Barracas Central go to great lengths to insist they are receiving no special treatment following promotion. The appointment of referee ‘Quichi’ Patia, however, who bears an uncanny resemblance to the AFA president except for an extravagant handlebar moustache and is chosen to officiate all of Barracas' games, raises some eyebrows.

2022: THE YEAR IN PREVIEW

What lies ahead for Argentine football in 2022

31-12-2021 13:30 Your (tongue-firmly-in-cheek) guide to what lies ahead for Argentine football in the next 12 months.

by Dan Edwards

'KUN' HANGS UP BOOTS

Aguero: From baby-faced wonderkid to one of game’s greatest goalscorers

18-12-2021 08:18 For Independiente, Atlético, City and Argentina alike, memory will endure of the kid from Bernal who reached the very top.

by Dan Edwards

Newell's Old Boys legend Maximiliano Rodríguez and River Plate's Leonardo Ponzio, along with Racing Club idol Lisandro López.

FOOTBALL

Veteran stars get fond farewells as new stars rise

10-12-2021 22:28 Newell's Old Boys legend Maximiliano Rodríguez and River Plate's Leonardo Ponzio among those to bow out, as a new generation prepares to step up in Argentina.

by Dan Edwards

BALLON D'OR

Even in the twilight of his career, Messi remains the man to beat

03-12-2021 22:08 Lionel Messi said it himself: Exorcising Argentina’s demons in Brazil and leading the side to Copa América glory was “the key” in winning him a record seventh Ballon d’Or.

by Dan Edwards

River Plate's players celebrate after clinching the title.

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

Relentless River clinch title, ending seven-year drought

26-11-2021 23:10 What at one point appeared to be a tense race to the finish for River eventually turned out to be a procession. Celebrations at a packed Monumental were echoed in Tigre, who secure return to the top flight.

by Dan Edwards

Argentina's coach Lionel Scaloni gives instructions to forward Lionel Messi, next to midfielder Ángel Di María, during a training session in Ezeiza, Buenos Aires, on November 9, 2021.

International football

Argentina face tough test against under pressure Uruguay

12-11-2021 01:13 Lionel Scaloni's Albiceleste troops are on a roll. Victory over Uruguay in Peñarol's Estadio Campeón del Siglo would leave them free to start looking ahead to Qatar 2022.

by Dan Edwards

International football

Scaloni looks to the future with surprise Albiceleste squad call-ups

05-11-2021 18:04 Argentina’s national team coach appears to be betting on the next generation for the upcoming clashes against Uruguay and Brazil.

by Dan Edwards

MARCELO GALLARDO

River reap rewards of their much-admired Muñeco

29-10-2021 22:01 Marcelo Gallardo has established himself as one of the football’s greatest tacticians during his time at River Plate. Luckily for the MIllionario – and Argentine football as a whole – the big clubs continue to look elsewhere.

by Dan Edwards

Boca Juniors eye a blockbuster end to league campaign.

FOOTBALL

Resurgent Boca eye blockbuster finish to league campaign

22-10-2021 22:07 Nineteen months on from the Xeneize’s Superliga title win, plucked right from out under the nose of River Plate, there’s a sense of déjà vu around La Boca. But have they left it too little, too late?

by Dan Edwards

Argentina's players celebrate at the end of the South American qualification football match against Peru for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, at the Monumental stadium in Buenos Aires, on October 14, 2021.

International football

Peru fail to disrupt the Scaloneta as Argentina march on

15-10-2021 00:37 If this Argentina team has one great virtue, and there are plenty to choose from, it is the unshakeable self-belief that courses through its veins.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL

Home crowd awaits for unbeaten Argentina

08-10-2021 00:03 After Italy's defeat to Spain on Wednesday the Albiceleste became the national team with the longest unbeaten record in the world, having last gone down at the 2019 Copa América to Brazil.

by Dan Edwards

SUPERCLÁSICO SUNDAY

The Superclásico is back – and this time, it's public

01-10-2021 20:54 Long-standing coronavirus restrictions mean that two years almost to the day have passed since supporters were last able to witness this showpiece fixture.

by Dan Edwards

SUPPORTERS ARE BACK

Football fans set to end 18-month Covid exile from stadiums

24-09-2021 21:47 After 18 long, quiet months, the moment has finally arrived: fans will flock back through stadium turnstiles from the start of October onwards.

by Dan Edwards

What is more, their coach, ex-Nacional boss Alexander Medina, has them playing some of the best football in the league, balancing attack and defence to perfection while making full use of the resources at hand.

ARGENTINE FOOTBALL

Rampant Talleres scale top-flight summit in style

17-09-2021 13:51 Talleres’ starting line-up is composed mostly of players who fell short at Argentina's more established giants and moved to Córdoba in search of a fresh start.

by Dan Edwards

Images from Argentina's clash against Bolivia, in which Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick. After the match, the players celebrated their Copa América win with fans, in the first match played before spectators in Argentina since March 2020.

International football

Messi shines as Argentina’s Copa heroes reunite with fans

10-09-2021 02:44 In South America the last two weeks have suffered no such shortage of controversy as the World Cup qualifiers – well, almost all of them – rumbled on.

by Dan Edwards

Lautaro Martínez celebrates his strike against Venezuela.

WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS

Fine return to action for Scaloni's heroes

03-09-2021 03:16 Relaxed and confident Argentina see off Venezuela in the first of three World Cup qualifying matches in seven days.

by Dan Edwards

Football in Argentina

Fans can return to football, but will the players be there?

27-08-2021 23:08 Argentine fans were able to celebrate the prospect of finally returning to the stadium, only to discover that there may not actually be any players on the pitch when they do so.

by Dan Edwards

Football in Argentina

Boca and River’s woes representative of a wider slump

21-08-2021 20:07 Argentina’s two biggest clubs seem to be running a competition to see who can get themselves in a bigger mess.

by Dan Edwards

Lionel Messi poses with a PSG shirt on the pitch at the Parc des Princes.

MESSI MOVES TO PARIS

Messi’s hunger for more means star is sure to shine in City of Lights

13-08-2021 23:03 Argentina's Copa América hero has chosen a PSG side which will give him every tool necessary to keep fighting for the biggest honours.

by Dan Edwards

Boca Juniors' players celebrate after defeating River on penalties.

ARGENTINE FOOTBALL

Familiarity can breed contempt – for Boca, River and fans of football

07-08-2021 08:23 Despite the clash of Argentina's two most fearsome rivals this week, it was difficult to raise even the slightest enthusiasm for proceedings. The concerning fact is that such games have become all too common.

by Dan Edwards

Argentina's Olympic Games Men's Football team on Wednesday joined the long and growing list of competitors to fall short in Tokyo, as a plucky draw against Spain proved insufficient to qualify from Group C ahead of the Europeans and Egypt

OLYMPICS: TOKYO 2020 (in 2021)

So near and yet so far for Albiceleste in Tokyo

30-07-2021 22:17 The young talent in the next generation is out there, even if it was in short supply in Japan.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL: Copa Libertadores

Another chaotic Copa Libertadores clash? Normal service has been resumed.

23-07-2021 16:12 Boca’s brawl in Brazil stole headlines across the continent this week...

by Dan Edwards

Copa América

Argentina overcome odds in Brazil – and inspire hope for future

17-07-2021 00:37 Victory over Brazil in the Maracanã represented a rare moment of joy in these troubled times – and the Albiceleste’s Copa América triumph will raise hopes ahead of Qatar 2022.

by Dan Edwards

Argentina's players are seen during a training session in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 9, 2021.

Copa América

Argentina hope to upset the odds (and Bolsonaro) in Copa clash with Brazil

09-07-2021 17:57 Argentina will start the Copa América final against Brazil as comfortable outsiders after squeezing past Colombia. But the Albiceleste have grown in unity and confidence throughout the tournament, and with Lionel Messi in fine form, defeat is anything but inevitable.

by Dan Edwards

Copa América

Argentina on right track ahead of Copa América knock-outs

02-07-2021 14:44 After sailing through their Copa América group, Lionel Messi and Co now face Ecuador in the quarter-finals, aware that just one slip will be enough to send them home.

by Dan Edwards

ARGENTINE TURNS 34

Lionel Messi: Elder statesman, but just as essential as ever

26-06-2021 00:30 The Barcelona and Argentina wizard turned 34 on Thursday, an age which usually signals the beginning of the end for professionals. The event was accompanied by an outpouring of tributes, acknowledgement of the towering impact Messi has had since first bursting onto the scene.

by Dan Edwards

Argentina's Lionel Messi walks by Copa América trophy before the Albiceleste's clash with Chile at the Nilton Santos Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on June 14, 2021.

The Covid Copa

Zero margin for error for Argentina in Copa América clash with Chile

18-06-2021 00:51 There are high expectations on either side of the Río de la Plata for today's Copa America derby, the first between Argentina and Uruguay in a competitive clash since August 2017.

by Dan Edwards

Argentina's Lionel Messi takes on Colombian defender Davinson Sánchez during the two sides' recent World Cup qualifier.

NATIONAL TEAM

Argentina lay foundations ahead of Copa América’s kick-off

11-06-2021 00:36 Draws in World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Colombia remind the Albiceleste that there’s little margin for error. But there’s still grounds for optimism ahead of the Covid Copa in Brazil.

by Dan Edwards

Argentina's Lionel Messi and Chile's Gary Medel greet each other after drawing 1-1 in their South American qualification football match for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 at the Estadio Unico Madre de Ciudades stadium in Santiago del Estero, Argentina, on June 3, 2021.

INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL

Chile, Argentina warm up for Brazil's Covid Copa with 1-1 draw

04-06-2021 02:11 This week has seen a wave of activity in international football, most of which occurred far away from the confines of the pitch. But Thursday night's 1-1 draw keeps Argentina's unbeaten qualifier record intact and on track for a place at Qatar 2022.

by Dan Edwards

Copa Libertadores matches continued this week in Argentina, despite the health crisis.

FOOTBALL IN ARGENTINA

CONMEBOL ensures show must go on in Argentina

29-05-2021 11:17 When is a ban on football not a ban on football? Apparently, when CONMEBOL decides to flex its muscles.

by Dan Edwards

River Plate's emergency goalkeeper Enzo Pérez, pictured during his side's Copa Libertadores football tournament group stage match against Colombia's Independiente Santa Fe at the Monumental in Buenos Aires, on May 19, 2021.

ARGENTINE FOOTBALL

Enzo Pérez dons the gloves as River overcome Covid catastrophe

20-05-2021 22:14 A rookie lining up in the Superclásico, and Enzo Pérez donning the gloves for a key Copa Libertadores match, all in the space of 72 hours – it has been an eventful week indeed for River Plate between the goal-posts.

by Dan Edwards

Boca and River face-off this. Sunday in another Superclásico.

FOOTBALL

Boca bid to break River hoodoo in Sunday Superclásico

15-05-2021 12:18 Seventeen years almost to the day have now passed since Boca Juniors last got the better of River Plate in a knock-out tournament, in the 2004 Copa Libertadores.

by Dan Edwards

CARLOS TIMOTEO GRIGUOL (1934-2021)

Griguol may have departed, but El Viejo’s teachings will live on

08-05-2021 00:22 Carlos Timoteo Griguol, legendary coach of Ferro Carril Oeste, River Plate, Rosario Central and Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata, died Thursday aged 86, after a month-long struggle with coronavirus.

by Dan Edwards

FOOTBALL

Argentine sides off to good start in Copa Libertadores ties

30-04-2021 02:18 A total of five Argentine sides currently occupy qualifying spots for the next round of the Copa Libertadores.

by Dan Edwards