Brazil v Argentina divides Champions League titans
Thursday, November 10, 2016
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Atlético Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain all have a foot in both camps as Brazil prepare to take on Argentina in a key FIFA World Cup qualifier.
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The pre-match handshakes may be longer than usual when Argentina meet Brazil on Thursday, with a host of UEFA Champions League stars up against their clubmates.
The following sets of team-mates could find themselves on opposite sides:
Atlético Madrid
Filipe Luís (Brazil) v Nicolás Gaitan & Ángel Correa (Argentina)
Barcelona
Neymar (Brazil) v Javier Mascherano & Lionel Messi (Argentina)
Juventus
Dani Alves (Brazil) v Gonzalo Higuaín (Argentina)
Manchester City
Fernandinho (Brazil) v Nicolás Otamendi, Pablo Zabaleta & Sergio Agüero (Argentina)
Paris Saint-Germain
Marquinhos & Thiago Silva (Brazil) v Ángel Di María (Argentina)
UEFA Europa League: Internazionale
Miranda (Brazil) v Éver Banega (Argentina)
Five teams involved in this season's UEFA Champions League group stage will have a foot in both camps in the FIFA World Cup qualifier in Belo Horizonte, with Argentina trailing their neighbours by five points in the section.
Sixth in the group ahead of kick-off, Argentina are outside the qualifying places and in danger of missing out on the finals for the first time since 1970. Brazil have never missed a final tournament.
The teams have met in 102 official games, with Brazil 39-37 up in terms of wins (and both teams level on 156 goals each).