Argentina Hadapi Swiss pada Perempat Final Piala Dunia 2026

Tim nasional Argentina akan menghadapi Swiss dalam pertandingan perempat final Piala Dunia 2026 di Kansas City pada Minggu, 12 Juli 2026, demi mempertahankan gelar juara mereka.

Dilansir dari theanalyst.com, superkomputer Opta memprediksi Argentina memiliki peluang kemenangan sebesar 57,1 persen dalam waktu normal, sementara Swiss hanya memiliki peluang sebesar 18,7 persen.

Argentina melaju ke babak delapan besar setelah bangkit dari tertinggal dua gol untuk mengalahkan Mesir dengan skor 3-2 melalui gol penentu Enzo Fernandez di masa injury time.

Kapten Argentina, Lionel Messi, mencetak sejarah sebagai pemain pertama yang mencetak gol dalam enam pertandingan fase gugur Piala Dunia berturut-turut, sekaligus mengemas delapan gol di turnamen ini.

Kendati demikian, lini pertahanan Argentina menghadapi tantangan karena telah kebobolan lima kali dari total sembilan tembakan tepat sasaran yang dihadapi sepanjang turnamen.

Di sisi lain, Swiss melaju ke perempat final Piala Dunia pertama mereka sejak 1954 tanpa pernah tertinggal satu kali pun dalam 11 laga terakhir, termasuk babak kualifikasi.

Swiss diperkuat oleh Granit Xhaka yang mencatatkan 50 umpan progresif di sepertiga akhir lapangan, serta Ricardo Rodriguez yang berpengalaman tampil dalam 31 laga turnamen mayor.

Namun, Swiss harus tampil tanpa Johan Manzambi yang dipastikan absen akibat cedera menjelang pertandingan krusial di Stadion Kansas City tersebut.

Dalam konferensi pers yang dilansir koha.net, kapten Swiss membeberkan strategi timnya untuk meredam pergerakan kapten Argentina dalam pertandingan mendatang.

"We will give everything. We will try to have possession of the ball. If he doesn't have the ball, I can't do much," ujar Granit Xhaka, Kapten Timnas Swiss.

Xhaka menambahkan bahwa timnya sangat bangga bisa mencapai perempat final setelah 72 tahun dan mengenang pertemuan kontra Argentina pada Piala Dunia 2014 silam.

"I have great memories from 2014 as it was my first World Cup. We played well and unfortunately we conceded a goal at the end. Blerim should have scored that goal at the end.

It's a good thing I'm still here with Ricardo Rodriguez. Football is played in Switzerland. Ricci is a calm person who has always responded on the pitch.

Ricci is a special person. We both have over 140 appearances. Ricci is very important for our team," kata Granit Xhaka, Kapten Timnas Swiss.

Gelandang Bayer Leverkusen tersebut menegaskan bahwa pertandingan ini bukanlah misi balas dendam atas kekalahan tipis di masa lampau, melainkan sebuah kesempatan baru untuk bermimpi.

"I wouldn't call it a rematch. It's a different game. We're in the quarter-finals and we want to win.

I want to dream and sometimes dreams come true. But we have to sweat and perform well for that. We have to push ourselves beyond the limits.

Every tournament is special and has its own story. For us in Switzerland, it's a privilege. We've played in two countries.

The pitches are perfect. And Switzerland has done well so far," tutur Granit Xhaka, Kapten Timnas Swiss.

Terkait cuaca panas yang diperkirakan melanda lokasi pertandingan di Kansas City, Xhaka menyatakan hal tersebut tidak memengaruhi fokus utama timnya untuk memberikan performa terbaik.

"It's a privilege to play here. It's one of the best moments of my career. After 72 years, to be able to play with Switzerland against the world champions makes me proud.

But we're not here just to stay on the pitch. We're going to give it our best," ucap Granit Xhaka, Kapten Timnas Swiss.

Pelatih Swiss, Murat Yakin, turut berbicara mengenai kesiapan taktik tim dan kehilangan salah satu pemain pentingnya akibat cedera.

"Manzambi's absence is a big blow. He had the momentum on his side. Unfortunately he can't play. We will compensate for this as a team," kata Murat Yakin, Pelatih Timnas Swiss.

Yakin juga membela integritas kemenangan Argentina atas Mesir yang sempat menuai banyak kritik dari berbagai pihak sebelum laga perempat final ini.

"I think the matches are clean. Everything can be resolved through VAR. We know they play a strong game.

There are a lot of physical aspects and passion in every match. We have to deal with that," ujar Murat Yakin, Pelatih Timnas Swiss.