The reigning world champions are entering the tournament in fantastic form: they have won their last five friendlies with a combined score of 14-1. Algeria, despite being a solid mid-table team (they crushed Bolivia 4-0 and sensationally beat the Netherlands), clearly lacks the class and depth of the Albiceleste squad.
Their head-to-head record also favors the favorites. The only previous match between these teams took place back in 2007 and ended in a 4-3 victory for Argentina. Although that game was high-scoring, today's Argentina is much more defensively sound (with four clean sheets in their last five matches). Algeria, meanwhile, relies on counterattacks and the speed of Mahrez, but this won't be enough against the world champions' established system.
The Algerians aren't exactly pushovers; they're capable of putting up a fight and even scoring, but they'll have a hard time counting on points against Messi and company. The predicted score is 2-0 or 2-1 for Argentina.
