Word: batistuta
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...needlessly elaborate game strategy came in Argentina's final outing, against Sweden. With the Swedes reluctant to leave their own half, the South American champs were easily able to feed the ball to Pablo Aimar and Ariel Ortega, who were in turn meant to create scoring opportunities for Gabriel Batistuta. Both of these diminutive players have had the misfortune of being tagged "the new Maradona." Perhaps the heavy burden of that label compelled them to show off their dazzling skills every time they received the ball, weaving one way, then the other, deceiving a couple of defenders, then turning again...
...What is age, anyway? Mariano Dayan, editor of the Argentine sports paper Ol?, says Batistuta's sharpshooting skills are innate. "He has the nose, the instinct. He was born with it and will die with it." And just to show the world that the years haven't sated his appetite, Batistuta bagged four goals in the second half of a warm-up game against J-League champions Kashima Antlers. O.K., so Kashima's defense isn't exactly world-class but it was good enough to neutralize, for the entire first half, a certain Hernan Crespo...
...give the kid a break: it was just a warm-up. In the matches that mattered, Crespo delivered the goods, scoring nine times during Argentina's qualifying march. Overall, he has a strike rate of one goal every other game?better even than English idol Michael Owen. Where Batistuta is a smooth assassin, Crespo is a wily pickpocket, deceiving defenders and slipping unnoticed into goal-scoring positions. At 26, he is at the peak of his powers, and although he hasn't scored in recent friendlies, he has looked sharp...
...almost identical in size. But in playing style, they have one crucial difference. Crespo's edge over Batistuta is his ability to initiate attacks, not just finish them off. He is given to "dropping back to start movements from down the middle or on the flanks," Bielsa says. Still, this is an underrated quality, perhaps because the Argentine team is already richly endowed with playmakers?none more creative than the midfield genius Juan Sebastian Veron. Bielsa, many commentators suggest, doesn't need an extra goalmaker; he needs a forward who concentrates on the business of slamming the ball into...
...assembled at the J-Village make up the strongest squad the country has ever sent to the World Cup?including the champion sides of 1978 and 1986. With either of the two superstrikers wreaking havoc, the team stands apart as the thinking fan's favorite to win it all. Batistuta or Crespo? In the end, Bielsa might just as well have tossed a coin...