Gabriel Batistuta defends Lautaro Martinez and Julian Alvarez

Argentina legend Gabriel Batistuta has publicly defended national team strikers Lautaro Martinez and Julian Alvarez. Speaking at an event in the United States, the former forward praised the duo, despite acknowledging that they are not currently in their best form during the World Cup.

They are world stars. They are here playing in the World Cup, defending Argentina, and I believe they are doing fine. We always expect them to score, but right now Messi is scoring. As long as we have someone else scoring, there are no problems. Argentina plays as a team. Gabriel Batistuta

In the current tournament, Lautaro Martinez has managed only one goal—a penalty against Jordan—while Julian Alvarez has yet to find the back of the net. Batistuta emphasized that the team's success is collective and not solely dependent on the output of these two forwards.

Reflecting on the upcoming Round of 16 clash against Egypt, Batistuta expressed a mix of confidence and caution. He noted that the group stage is fundamentally different from the knockout phase, where the pressure of a "win or go home" scenario changes the dynamic of every match.