Uruguay and Argentina face off at the Estadio Centenario on Friday night in the battle of the top two in the CONMEBOL 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying standings.
Indeed, the visitors lead the table with 25 points after 12 games played, with the hosts in second on 20 points from the same number of matches. Should they remain in those positions come the end of qualifying, then they will both automatically qualify for the next World Cup.
Uruguay have stumbled in qualifying of late, with their 1-1 draw in Brazil in November in their previous outing being their fourth in six qualifying matches, with only one win in that time too.
Argentina's form has not been much better either, with a 1-0 win at home to Peru last time out being just their third victory in six qualifiers, with two defeats in those as well.
Uruguay beat Argentina in the reverse fixture too, a 2-0 loss in 2023 which represents their last defeat on home soil. They were previously unbeaten in seven H2Hs though, including winning the last three prior, so this latest clash could be a tough one to call.
How the bookies view it: Close call
Uruguay are slight 13/8 favourites with BoyleSports to win, just ahead of a draw at 7/4. An Argentina victory is only priced slightly above that at 15/8 with the same bookmaker.
Recent head-to-head: Rare Argentina home defeat
As mentioned, Uruguay inflicted Argentina's only home defeat since 2023 by beating them 2-0 earlier in qualifying. Ronald Araujo gave them the lead in the first half, before Darwin Nunez ensured of the three points late on.
Players to watch: Who replaces Messi?
Darwin Nunez has not had the best of times in a Liverpool shirt of late, but he remains the key focal point of Uruguay's attack. Indeed, his goal in the reverse fixture was one of five in qualifying so far, making him the second-top scorer behind a certain Lionel Messi (six).
Nunez is a tempting 9/4 to score anytime with BoyleSports.
Who replaces the injured Messi for Argentina? Both Lautaro Martinez and Julian Alvarez have been in great goalscoring form for their respective clubs, so perhaps the little magician may not be missed too much.
Alvarez is priced slightly higher than Martinez (11/4) at 3/1 with BoyleSports to score anytime, so we feel that he is worth the extra backing.
Predicted lineups
Unlike Argentina, Uruguay have few major absentees from their squad, which means that they can field a strong team.
The visitors will be missing influential captain and talisman Messi through injury, while Paulo Dybala has also been ruled out.
Uruguay: Rochet, Varela, Gimenez, Olivera, Saracchi, Valverde, Ugarte, Bentancur, Pellistri, Nunez, Aguirre.
Argentina: Martinez, Montiel, Balerdi, Otamendi, Tagliafico, De Paul, Fernandez, Mac Allister, Correa, Martinez, Alvarez.
Anything else catch the eye?
We have already backed Both Teams To Score (BTTS), so combining it with the Total Goals market seems wise to get a better overall price. Argentina (21) and Uruguay (17) are the top and joint-second top scorers respectively in qualifying so far, netting a combined 38 goals over their 12 matches each.
At an average of just over three goals per game combined, backing over 2.5 goals at least seems sensible, with BoyleSports offering 2/1 for BTTS and Over 2.5 Total Goals.
This World Cup match between Uruguay and Argentina will be played on and kick off at 23:30. Check below for our tipsters best Uruguay vs Argentina prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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