Rudi Völler Criticizes Argentine Football After Qatar World Cup

Ex-German striker Rudi Völler, an historic arch-rival of the Albiceleste since 1986 and 1990, has reiterated his criticism against Argentina's style of play following the recent Qatar World Cup. During the International Congress of the Association of German Football Coaches, Völler was vocal about his disapproval of the team's approach to football.

Currently serving as the sports director for the German Football Federation, Rudi Völler deemed Argentine football not in line with traditional soccer principles. He criticized, especially, how Argentina plays: "I said that we need to improve our defending in Germany. Many people held the Argentinians up as a model and I believed it was a bad example. Suddenly, they became the reference point. It seemed like a somewhat hypocritical debate," he stated.

He sharply criticized the admiration for the team's style of play: "I don't want a team that plays like Argentina. What they did had nothing to do with football. Yes, they are world champions and this time runners-up, but I really don't understand those praises from so many people.

In contrast, Völler supported Spanish and English clubs which he argued deserved the accolades: "Spain deserves the praise, and the English also defended well."

According to Völler, despite winning the World Cup, Argentine defending is clearly lacking: "Well, that we don't know how to defend, I haven't said, but we can and must defend better, that's a fact, it starts from above or in midfield."

Additionally, Völler addressed Argentina as role models when faced with criticisms post-world cup: "Apart from Lionel Messi, who is extraordinary and whom everyone wanted this World Cup title for, don't tell me that the Argentinians are better than us.