What did the last Argentina vs Brazil game without Messi or Neymar look like? | OneFootball

Argentina and Brazil are set to face off at the Monumental in the 14th round of CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers.

On a rare occasion, the Brazilians are sitting third in the table after years of regional dominance in South America. This time, it is the Argentinians who lead the race.

Still, neither team will have its main man available for tomorrow’s encounter. Lionel Messi and Neymar were both named in the squads but withdrew due to injury. This means that Argentina and Brazil will face off without the pair for the first time in nearly 20 years. Here’s what the last one looked like.

The last of the best

The reigning world champions, Brazil, were enjoying their last full year as the best team in the world. Although they would continue to be considered favourites in every competition for years to come due to their star-studded lineup, the 2005 Confederations Cup final marked one of the final times they combined their impressive roster with the quality of football displayed on the field.

As was typical for them, the green-and-yellow team did not put forth much effort during the group stage, ending with one win, one draw, and one loss over three games. They finished second in Group B, behind Mexico—the team that had defeated them—and had to face the host country, Germany, in the semifinals. The match was a thrilling encounter, with all five goals scored in the first half, resulting in a 3–2 victory for Brazil. Meanwhile, Argentina advanced to the final after defeating Mexico in a penalty shootout.

Trademark Adriano and Kaká

Brazil and Argentina had already faced each other in a final the previous year—the 2004 Copa América. That match ended in a 2–2 draw, with Brazil becoming champions after winning the penalty shootout.

In 2005, the story was different—and not as evenly matched. In the 11th minute, Adriano struck one of his famous powerful left-footed shots from distance, leaving goalkeeper Germán Lux with no chance. Just five minutes later, Kaká added a beautiful curler from outside the box, finding the top right corner and making it 2–0 within the first 15 minutes of play.

The Brazilians maintained their momentum in the second half, with Ronaldinho scoring the third goal in the 47th minute. Cicinho, who provided the cross, had also assisted Adriano’s first goal and would go on to set up his second in the 67th minute with a well-placed header, extending Brazil’s lead to 4–0.

Pablo Aimar managed to score a consolation goal for Argentina with a rare header shortly after, but that was all they could muster.

Messi and Neymar

Lionel Messi made his debut in the Brazil vs. Argentina derby the next time the teams faced each other, but unfortunately, it ended in another loss for Argentina, with a score of 3–0. The goals came from Elano (twice) and Kaká during an international friendly held at the newly built Emirates Stadium.

Similarly, Neymar’s first appearance against Argentina resulted in a narrow 1–0 defeat, with Messi scoring the only goal in the 90th minute. At that time, the Argentine wizard was 23 years old, while the Brazilian wonderkid was making his debut as a full international at just 18. Three years later, they teamed up at Barcelona, forming an incredible partnership that led to nine titles in four seasons.

And, of course, no one would have predicted their meeting again, away from the Spanish giants, in 2021, when Messi signed for Paris Saint-Germain.

Who’s next in line?

Without the main stars Lionel Messi and Neymar, the question now is who will step up for Argentina and Brazil. For Brazil, the clear candidate is Vinícius Júnior, the current winner of FIFA’s The Best award.

The Real Madrid forward recently scored the winning goal in the ninth minute of added time in his national team’s last match. However, Raphinha also made an impact, stealing the show with a goal and an assist, and he has continued to impress in club competitions with Barcelona.

As for Argentina, it remains very much Lionel Messi’s team. He leads the squad in goals (6) and assists (3) in the World Cup Qualifiers and has been more consistent than Neymar, who suffered an ACL injury in 2023 and spent a year on the sidelines. Messi has scored twice as many goals as the next players—Nicolás Otamendi and Lautaro Martínez, both with three—in the tournament so far and shows no signs of slowing down.

Last week, Julián Álvarez stepped up significantly, taking charge of the attack and being very active with the ball. He assisted Thiago Almada’s stunning goal that secured a victory away at Uruguay and led the team in several key metrics: chances created (4), passes in the final third (19), duels contested (12), take-ons attempted (4), and successful take-ons (3)—a performance that Messi would certainly commend.