Cabo Verde head coach Bubista arrived at his pre-match press conference in Miami on 3 July with a clear message: his side has earned its place in the FIFA World Cup 2026 round of 32, and Argentina should expect a fight. The African debutants face the reigning world champions at Miami Stadium in what promises to be one of the most intriguing knockout fixtures of the tournament.

How Cabo Verde Got Here

Cabo Verde navigated a formidable group containing Spain, Uruguay, and Saudi Arabia, collecting three draws to advance to the knockout stage. Argentina, by contrast, swept through Group J with three consecutive victories. The contrast in routes has done nothing to dampen Bubista's confidence.

'If other teams had no respect, the problem is theirs. We trust in what we do, in what we have done. We demonstrated this in our qualification, with also quite difficult teams. We are here by our merit,' Bubista said, responding to a question about whether his side had been underestimated.

'We enjoyed the three games, face-to-face with the opponents, with the possibility of winning the games. That's what we're going to do tomorrow. We know the quality of our opponent, but we have our dream, we continue with it,' he added.

The Game Plan: Argentina as a Whole, Not Just Messi

Bubista was emphatic that his tactical preparation targets the entire Argentina squad rather than being built around neutralising Lionel Messi alone. 'We know that Argentina is the current world champion and is one of the best teams in the competition, and that's where our task will be — for all the Argentina team. Obviously, we know that Messi is one of the best players in the world. But everything we did with our team we will have to do for the entire Argentina team,' the coach said.

Defender Stopira reinforced that collective outlook. 'We don't just look at Messi himself; we know Messi's ability and Messi's quality, but we look at the whole Argentina team. We want to do our job on the field and make Argentina's life as difficult as possible,' the 38-year-old said.

Courage, Humility, and Fire

Bubista outlined the mental framework he wants his players to carry into the match. 'First of all, against the current champion, we want to have courage; during the game, have humility; and try to play a good game. We want our players to enjoy the game itself, but with humility, with fire and determination to overcome our opponent,' he said.

Stopira, who has yet to feature in a single minute of the tournament so far, set aside any personal frustration to back his teammates. 'I am very proud of what my teammates are doing in the defensive part. It doesn't occur to me to be angry. I give all my support to my teammates to keep doing what we are doing. The most important thing is that we arrive at the match trying to overcome and achieve the goal that keeps us going,' he said.

Refereeing Controversy: Cabo Verde Stay Focused

Social media speculation has suggested that Argentina benefitted from favourable refereeing decisions during the group stage, but Bubista refused to engage with the narrative. 'We have nothing to say about it. We prefer to face the games with concentration on the game itself, on what we can do. Refereeing is a separate matter. We will always think that we will have a good refereeing team that can make a good game. On our part we always try to play with fair play, with discipline. Refereeing is not our focus,' he said.

Notably, this is Cabo Verde's debut appearance at a FIFA World Cup, making their advance to the knockout round a historic achievement for African football. A result against the defending champions would rank among the greatest upsets in World Cup history. All eyes turn to Miami Stadium on 4 July.