Keys to understanding how Los Pumas got to the World Cup | By Gonzalo Bonadeo

The Argentine rugby team will debut this Saturday against England in an important match to decide the future of Group D.

The 1999 World Cup marked a milestone in the history of Argentine rugby. Until then, the team had eight losses and one victory; Since that moment, they have passed the group stage four times, achieved historic victories and even achieved third place in 2007.with this being Los Pumas’ best performance so far.

It is certain that year, in 2007, where Los Pumas broke the shell. The most graphic way to explain it is through the River-Boca. Just like they read. The thing is that the Superclásico is scheduled for the same time as Argentina-France -for third place- and AFA, sensitive to the situation, decided to advance “its” game so that Núñez’s images do not overlap with those coming from the Parque de los Príncipes.

The result of that afternoon? El Millonario won 2-0 (goals from Falcao and Ortega, from a penalty) and Los Pumas won 34-10.

The second great performance of Argentine rugby was in 2015. The usual pattern was to debut against the toughest rivals, New Zealand, a loss that created a scenario of uncertainty for the next round but that opened the doors to the great blow of the quarterfinals, against Irelanda cuckoo who arrived as a two-time Six Nations champion and bid farewell to one hell of a ride.

This brief historical review helps us mark how Los Pumas got to the prestigious place they have today (sixth in the ranking) and what awaits them at the 2023 World Cup. To start, again the debut against the most complicated team, England . The result will be key to what happens next: if they win – and on a level of assumptions – Argentina will have a great chance to top their group and thus avoid Australia in the quarterfinals.

What is the present for English? They are coming off a very difficult year, with just two wins and seven losses (some of them by landslides), with suspended players and many last-minute changes.

Argentina arrived better, the product of a process that took years and that was also expressed in Pumitas, in the Youth Olympic champion team, in Rugby 7… There is a certain combination of youth and experience, with a third of the current squad present at the 2015 World Cup, without too much difficulty when it comes to making changes, with suitable and experienced replacements both in the Rugby Championship and in the preparatory friendlies.

But for the plan to work as Michael Cheika and the players are dreaming It is important to maintain discipline and not repeat violations, especially in the attackerrors that Argentina makes as a result of anxiety or some imbalance and where it ends up retreating fifty meters when it is very close to scoring points.