Overview
Argentina will enter the last match of Group J with the goal of maintaining a winning streak when facing Jordan, who have officially been eliminated from the 2026 World Cup.
The defending champion is in very high form after a 2-0 victory over Austria in the previous match. Lionel Messi shines with a double, thereby helping Argentina win a ticket to the round of 16 with the top spot in Group J.
Despite missing a penalty in the first half, Messi still managed to atone for his mistake with a beautiful opening goal before sealing the victory in injury time. With 18 goals at the World Cup, the 39-year-old superstar surpassed Miroslav Klose to become the greatest scorer in the history of the tournament.
Messi also became the third player to score in 6 consecutive World Cup matches, while Argentina extended their winning streak to 9 in all competitions. Lionel Scaloni's team kept a clean sheet in 8 matches in this streak and conceded only one goal.
The Argentine national team is aiming to successfully defend the World Cup title, something no team has done since Brazil in 1962. If they win the 2026 World Cup, Albiceleste will have four world championships, only behind Brazil's record of five titles.
Despite being rated superior, Argentina still has reason to be cautious. The last time they faced an Asian representative at the World Cup, they caused a shock when they lost to Saudi Arabia 1-2 in the opening match of the 2022 World Cup.
On the other side, Jordan has run out of chances to advance after two consecutive defeats against Austria (1-3) and Algeria (1-2). In the match against Algeria, the West Asian representative once took the lead thanks to a goal by Nizar Al-Rashdan but still let the opponent come back in the final minutes.
Although not yet scoring any points, Jordan still made a mark when scoring in both of the first 2 matches at the World Cup. However, the defense of the team under coach Jamal Sellami revealed many weaknesses, especially in set pieces when conceding 3 out of 5 goals from corner kicks.
Sellami affirmed that Jordan will strive to close the first World Cup in history with a positive performance. However, against an Argentina that is in very high form and possesses a sublime Messi, the task of creating surprises for the Asian representative is predicted to be extremely difficult.
Personnel situation
Jordan did not record any injuries or fitness problems before the confrontation with Argentina. Sellami is likely to continue using the squad that played quite well in the narrow defeat to Algeria.
In attack, Ali Olwan is expected to continue to start after scoring Jordan's first goal at the World Cup. This striker is only one goal behind the national team's all-time scoring record held by Hamza Al-Dardour.
On the Argentina side, center-back Cristian Romero is almost certainly absent after suffering a knee injury in the victory over Austria. Marcos Senesi and veteran Nicolas Otamendi are possible replacements, especially if Lisandro Martinez is given rest by Lionel Scaloni.
Expected lineup:
Abulaila, Al-Arab, Nasib, Abu Dahab, Haddad, Al-Rashdan, Al-Rawabdeh, Abu Taha, Al-Tamari, Al-Mardi, Olwan.
E. Martinez, Montiel, Otamendi, Martinez, Tagliafico, Lo Celso, Paredes, Palacios, Almada, Messi, L. Martinez.
The match between Jordan and Argentina takes place at 9:00 AM on June 28 (Vietnam time).
