Argentina will aim to officially secure their place at the 2026 World Cup when they take on fierce rivals Brazil at the Estadio Mas Monumental in Buenos Aires on Tuesday night. Lionel Scaloni’s side currently lead the South American qualifying standings with 28 points, while Brazil sit third, seven points behind their opponents. Despite missing key players, Argentina took a significant step towards qualification with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Uruguay last Friday. Thiago Almada’s stunning strike secured three points in Montevideo, ending La Albiceleste’s three-game winless streak away from home in World Cup qualifying. The defending world champions have been dominant throughout the campaign, winning nine of their 13 matches and conceding just seven goals. With a three-point lead at the top, Argentina will now turn their focus to extending their unbeaten run against Brazil, having won three and drawn one of their last four meetings, including a 1-0 victory in Rio de Janeiro during the reverse fixture.

Argentina’s home record in World Cup qualifying is formidable, with seven wins in their last eight home games and 11 clean sheets in their previous 12 qualifiers on home soil. However, they will have to navigate this fixture without their all-time top scorer, Lionel Messi, who is sidelined with an adductor injury. Lautaro Martínez and Paulo Dybala are also unavailable, while Nicolás González is suspended following his red card against Uruguay. Rodrigo De Paul, who was rested last week due to fitness concerns, could return to the starting lineup, replacing Leandro Paredes.

Brazil, meanwhile, have recovered from a poor start to their qualifying campaign and are on course to maintain their perfect record of World Cup appearances. The Selecao lost four of their first six matches but have since steadied the ship, going unbeaten in their last five qualifiers. After back-to-back wins over Chile and Peru in October, they drew with Venezuela and Uruguay before securing a dramatic 2-1 victory over Colombia last Thursday. Vinícius Júnior was the hero, scoring a sensational long-range winner in the 99th minute.

Despite their recent upturn in form, Brazil’s away record remains a concern, with just one win in their last five qualifiers on the road. Their last victory against Argentina came in the 2019 Copa América semi-finals, and they have since struggled in this fixture. The visitors will be without Ederson and Neymar due to injury, while Alisson and Gerson have withdrawn from the squad after picking up knocks against Colombia. Bento is set to start in goal, with André likely replacing Gerson in midfield. Leo Ortiz and Joelinton are expected to come in for the suspended Gabriel Magalhães and Bruno Guimarães.

Argentina’s impressive home form makes them slight favourites, but Brazil’s resilience in recent matches suggests they will not go down without a fight. With key absences on both sides, this clash could be a tense battle, and a draw seems the most likely outcome.

**Prediction: Argentina 1-1 Brazil**

周二晚上，阿根廷队将在布宜诺斯艾利斯的纪念体育场迎战劲敌巴西队，目标是正式确保他们在2026年世界杯的席位。莱昂内尔·斯卡罗尼的球队目前以28分领跑南美预选赛积分榜，而巴西队以落后对手7分的成绩排名第三。尽管主力球员缺阵，阿根廷队还是在上周五艰难的1-0战胜乌拉圭，向出线迈出了重要的一步。蒂亚戈·阿尔马达的绝杀为球队在蒙得维的亚拿下三分，结束了蓝白军团在世界杯预选赛客场三连胜的纪录。这支卫冕世界冠军在整个赛季中一直占据统治地位，他们在13场比赛中赢了9场，只丢了7个球。在领先三分的情况下，阿根廷现在将把注意力转向延续对巴西的不败纪录，他们在最近四次交锋中取得了三胜一平的成绩，其中包括在里约热内卢里约热内卢的逆转比赛中以1比0获胜。

阿根廷在世界杯预选赛的主场战绩令人敬畏，在最近的8场主场比赛中取得7场胜利，在之前的12场预选赛中11次零封对手。然而，他们将不得不在没有历史最佳射手梅西的情况下度过这场比赛，梅西因内收肌受伤而缺阵。劳塔罗Martínez和保罗·迪巴拉也无法上场，而Nicolás González在对阵乌拉圭的比赛中因红牌而停赛。罗德里戈·德保罗，上周由于健康问题而休息，可能会取代莱安德罗·帕雷德斯回到首发阵容。

与此同时，巴西已经从预选赛的糟糕开局中恢复过来，并将继续保持他们在世界杯上的完美记录。桑巴军团在前六场比赛中输掉了四场，但此后稳定了局面，在最近五场预选赛中保持不败。继去年10月背靠背战胜智利和秘鲁之后，他们又战平了委内瑞拉和乌拉圭，并于上周四戏剧性地以2比1战胜哥伦比亚。Vinícius Júnior是英雄，在第99分钟打进了一记激动人心的远射绝杀。

尽管他们最近的状态有所好转，但巴西的客场战绩仍然令人担忧，在最近的五场预选赛中，他们只在客场取得了一场胜利。他们上一次战胜阿根廷是在2019年美洲杯半决赛，此后他们在这场比赛中表现不佳。客队将因伤缺阵埃德森和内马尔，而阿利森和格尔森在对阵哥伦比亚的比赛中受伤后退出了大名单。本托将首发，安德烈可能取代格尔森出任中场。奥尔蒂斯和约林顿有望顶替停赛的马加莱·赫<e:1>斯和布鲁诺·吉马尔<e:1>斯。

阿根廷令人印象深刻的主场表现让他们成为夺冠热门，但巴西在最近几场比赛中的韧性表明，他们不会不战而退。由于双方都有关键球员缺席，这场冲突可能会是一场紧张的战斗，而平局似乎是最有可能的结果。

预测：阿根廷1-1巴西