On the day he scored twice to help Inter Miami win the title, Lionel Messi also received good news when he returned to the national team. Coach Lionel Scaloni has just called up the 37-year-old superstar for two 2026 World Cup qualifiers this October.
This is Messi’s first return since the 2024 Copa America final against Colombia on July 14. At that time, he suffered an ankle injury and was sidelined for two months. Messi missed Argentina’s two 2026 World Cup qualifiers in September, which may have contributed to the defending world champions’ 1-2 loss to Colombia.
Now that he has recovered from his injury and is back to his best form, Messi, who has contributed 4 goals and 2 assists in the last 4 matches for Inter Miami, helping the club win the 2024 Supporter’s Shield, is well-deserved to be called up to the national team. He received the call-up from coach Lionel Scaloni ahead of the match against Colombus Crew, a match in which Messi scored 2 goals to help the home team win 3-2 and win the title 2 rounds early.
Messi will return to the national team after more than 2 months
Messi ‘s presence has given Argentina more peace of mind in the context that they will lose two influential figures in the dressing room at the October training camp, Angel Di Maria and Emiliano Martinez. Di Maria has retired from the national team while goalkeeper Martinez has been suspended for two matches by FIFA for “violating the principle of fair play” by bringing the cup into a sensitive area.
Replacing Martinez is Juan Musso, while replacing Di Maria is Paulo Dybala, the striker who was left out of the last training session.
According to the schedule, Argentina will visit Venezuela on October 11 and welcome the 8th ranked team Bolivia on October 15. These are 2 underdogs, completely an opportunity for Argentina to win all 6 points, thereby “concrete” the top position.
LIST OF ARGENTINA TEAM TEAM
Players : Geronimo Rulli, Walter Benitez, Juan Musso.
Defenders: Gonzalo Montiel, Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero, Lisandro Martinez, Nicolas Otamendi, German Pezzella, Leonardo Balerdi, Marcos Acuna, Nicolas Tagliafico.
Midfielders: Rodrigo De Paul, Alexis Mac Allister, Leandro Paredes, Enzo Fernandez, Giovani Lo Celso, Thiago Almada, Guido Rodriguez, Nico Paz.
Forwards: Nicolas Gonzalez, Lautaro Martinez, Alejandro Garnacho, Julian Alvarez, Valentin Carboni, Valentin Carboni, Paulo Dybala, Lionel Messi.
