Aymeric Laporte has seen enough of Argentina at this World Cup to know exactly what is coming on Sunday. And he wants his Spain teammates to be ready for it.The Spain defender, speaking ahead of the World Cup final against Argentina at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Sunday, did not shy away from calling out what he believes is a deliberate part of Argentina’s game, a physical edge that goes beyond normal football and into something more calculated.“They often leave one in on you,” Laporte said. “It is something you can see throughout this tournament. They are very competitive and they use their physicality. We have to be prepared for that from the first minute.”It is an observation that carries weight. Argentina have not simply won matches at this World Cup, they have won ugly, won late, won dramatically and won by any means necessary. Four consecutive knockout matches were decided in the final minutes or beyond. Against Cape Verde, Egypt, England and others, Argentina have repeatedly shown a willingness to do what it takes physically, mentally and tactically to grind out results when beautiful football is not enough.For Spain, who have kept six clean sheets and conceded just once in seven matches at this tournament, the physical battle will be as important as the technical one. Laporte, who has been immense throughout the tournament alongside Pau Cubarsí at the heart of Spain’s defence, is the man tasked with handling Lautaro Martínez and keeping Lionel Messi away from dangerous positions.The contrast between the two sides could not be sharper. Spain have been the tournament’s most dominant and composed team, six clean sheets, 37 matches unbeaten, a possession-based game that has dismantled every opponent they have faced. Argentina have been the tournament’s most dramatic and resilient, comeback after comeback, with Messi pulling the strings every single time.One team has not conceded in six matches. The other cannot be stopped no matter who tries.
