By Fernando Kallas
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (Reuters) – Brazil’s forward Raphinha has spiced up their highly-anticipated World Cup qualifying clash away to Argentina on Tuesday by guaranteeing he will score and suggesting the match between the bitter rivals will become more physical than it should be.
“We’ll beat them up… Absolutely! Beat them up! On the pitch and off the pitch if we have to,” Raphinha said in an interview on “Romario TV” with the Brazilian great.
“For sure I’m going to (score a goal against Argentina). I’m going in with everything I’ve got…”
While Raphinha’s comments caused uproar in Argentina, with local media calling his “harsh words” a threat, the world champions’ manager Lionel Scaloni played down the rivalry with Brazil and decided not to add more fuel to the fire.
“Warriors on the pitch, good friends off of it,” he told a press conference later on Monday.
“I didn’t go much deeper into players’ statements but I’m aware of it. Argentina versus Brazil is an important match but it is still a football match. It doesn’t have to go beyond that.
“I remember the image of Leo (Messi) with Neymar after the Copa America final on the steps of the Maracana, that’s the image we have to keep. The best in the world and probably the second best together, being friends. That’s the image we need.
“It’s a football match that we both want to win. We all have a Brazilian friend, I know a lot of them, it shouldn’t go beyond that. We don’t have to give it much more thought.”
Tuesday’s outing at El Monumental in Buenos Aires will be Raphinha’s first game in Argentina since 2021 when he was elbowed in the mouth by home defender Nicolas Otamendi and had to have five stitches.
Brazil have not beaten the Argentines in six years, a run that extends to 16 years for matches held in Argentina, who lead the South American qualifying table with 28 points, six ahead of second-placed Ecuador and seven clear of Brazil in third.
If Bolivia fail to beat Uruguay in Tuesday’s earlier match Argentina will be guaranteed a place at the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada with four games left. Otherwise they can clinch a spot with a draw against Brazil.
The top six qualify directly for the tournament.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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