Nations Championship: Wales aim to make rugby headlines in football-mad Argentina

Thursday was Argentina’s national independence day, when celebrations and pomp brought parts of the capital to a standstill.

Wells, meanwhile, took another two-hour flight to San Juan.

It’s a much quieter destination in stark contrast to the bustling streets of Buenos Aires.

Located at the top of the San Juan Andes Mountains and famous for its wine, Mendoza is 100 miles away.

This is Argentina’s eighth official match in the city and the second time they have faced Wales here, with the visitors winning 23-10 in 2018.

It is an intimate venue with around 25,000 seats decked out in the traditional blue and white colors of the home side and unique fencing that gives the effect of a cage and separates supporters and players.

The stadium is located in an industrial estate with views across the hills and stray dogs roaming around as natural inhabitants.

That Wales win eight years ago Aaron Wainwright’s debutCurrent squad members Adam Baird, Dillon Lewis, Ryan Elias, Tomos Williams and Josh Adams were also part of that triumphant tour.

Further knowledge of the game in Argentina comes from Tandy, who toured with Scotland during his stint as defense coach.

He led the Lake Wales Under-20s to a remarkable victory over New Zealand in Rosario in 2019 with that squad including Jack Morgan, Tommy Raffel, Ben Warren, Sam Costello and Teddy Williams.

The limited air time given to rugby this football week has included discussion of the fact that Argentina have had a notoriously slow start to the campaign, as demonstrated last week when they lost 47-38 to Scotland in Cordoba.

Tandy and Wales need not be reminded of the heartache caused by Argentina in their two most recent encounters.

Argentina spoiled Tandy’s first game in charge with a record 52-28 win in Cardiff last November after Wales’ 2023 World Cup quarter-final defeat in Marseille.

Wales have just achieved a small revival to win their first Test since the World Cup, beating Italy and Fiji.

Tandy’s side are still ranked 11th in the world, four places below this weekend’s opponents, but could move into the top 10 if they win.

They are chasing a breakthrough victory in every sense.