Kylian Mbappe made headlines on Tuesday by claiming the Euros are more complicated than the World Cup. And it didn’t take long for Argentine goalkeeper Emiliano ‘Dibu’ Martinez to disagree with this kind of opinion.
In an interview with TyC Sports, the 2022 World Cup champion explained that the upcoming Copa America will be tougher than the last one, but made it clear that no tournament is as difficult as the World Cup.
“This Copa America is going to be a bit more difficult, 100%, more than the previous one. But there’s nothing harder than a World Cup, we all know that,” Dibu Martinez said.
Speaking to the media ahead of Euro 2024 with France, Mbappe stated the European Championship is more challenging because all the teams “know each other”, citing Les Bleus‘ group stage rivals — Poland, Netherlands, and Austria — as an example of how tough the competition is.
Kylian Mbappe of France scores the team’s first goal from the penalty spot past Emiliano Martinez of Argentina during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Final match between Argentina and France at Lusail Stadium on December 18, 2022 in Lusail City, Qatar.
Martinez, on the other hand, explained that while the 2024 Copa America — to be played in the US — will be more complicated than the one Argentina won in 2021 (different venues, weather, distances), the World Cup is still the toughest competition on Earth. “For us, the World Cup is more difficult.”
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Dibu Martinez already fired back at Mbappe once
While Martinez didn’t mention Mbappe this time, the Aston Villa star already hit back at the French striker for a controversial remark about South American soccer in the past. A few months before Qatar 2022, Mbappe got in the eye of the storm by claiming the level of competition outside Europe was not as good as in the Old Continent:
“The advantage we Europeans have is that we always play between us, in high level matches like the Nations League. When we arrive to the World Cup, we are ready. Brazil and Argentina don’t have that level in South America. Soccer is not as advanced as here in Europe. That’s why the last World Champions are always Europeans.”
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Unsurprisingly, Emiliano Martinez didn’t stay silent about this. Shortly after Mbappe’s comments went viral, the Argentine icon debunked the myth that playing in South America is easier than in Europe.
“Bolivia in La Paz, Ecuador with 30 degrees, Colombia where you cannot breathe. They (European) always play on perfect pitches and they don’t know what South America is,” Martinez told TyC Sports on May 2022. “Every time you travel to the national team, it’s two days between going and coming back, you’re exhausted and you can’t train much. An Englishman goes to train with England and in 30 minutes he is there. Let them go to Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador… Let’s see how easy it is for them.”
