Argentina’s head coach Lionel Scaloni spoke on Wednesday at a press conference ahead of Thursday’s World Cup qualifier against Chile in Santiago.
Scaloni surprised many by admitting that he is still unsure whether Lionel Messi is fully fit, and that the coaching staff is still evaluating whether he will start:
“We haven’t decided yet if he’ll start the match. It would be good to know how he’s doing physically. It’s clear that we’re in a position now where we can try other things. Initially, he’s ready to play — but we’ll assess. He had a good match last Saturday. For now, he’s available, and we’ll make a final decision soon.”
With several players suspended or injured, assembling the starting eleven hasn’t been easy. Scaloni commented on the situation:
“There will be a lot of absences, especially in the midfield. I haven’t confirmed the lineup yet because that will depend on training. But we’ll give a chance to players who haven’t had many minutes. It’s their moment to play.”
He also addressed the broader approach to the match:
“The result is always important, but right now we believe it’s not the most crucial thing. We’ll aim for the players to gel and have the chance to gain experience with the national team.”
On the absence of Alexis Mac Allister and Giovani Lo Celso, Scaloni explained:
“Alexis was on the list, but he’s been dealing with some lingering issues over the past year. We decided with him that it was best to rest. Fortunately, we’re not in a position where we need to take risks with players, so we agreed he should recover fully for what’s ahead. That’s why we called up Barrenechea and Buendía.”
“Lo Celso also arrived with an issue and likely won’t feature in either of the two matches. We need to focus on getting him back to full fitness.”
On Lautaro Martínez:
“I just saw Lautaro now. We spoke briefly, and I’ll talk more with him later. He’s here, he’ll travel with the team, but he won’t be playing. We had already agreed that he would take these days off — well deserved. He’s still part of the squad, that’s for sure.”
On Ángel Di María’s return to Rosario Central:
“It’s a joy to see him return to Argentine football. He’s a hero to so many people, not just fans of Rosario Central. Having a player of his caliber back is going to be something spectacular. It’s not only good for Argentine football but also for him — for his heart, his soul, to feel a bit more love. I’m very happy.”
Finally, on the potential Finalissima against Spain:
“I don’t know anything about it. We know this year is complicated. Next year? I don’t know — there’s the World Cup. We’ll see what decision the people who actually decide things make — because we don’t have much say. I don’t have any information.”
I am hoping Scaloni & Messi reinvents Messi’s role into a 2nd half + extra time trump card . I cant really see Messi playing 120mins back to back in WC 26. The remaining matches this year can be a great opportunity for
1) playing the first 50-60 minutes without Messi & then use a fresh Messi against a tired defense. We did a damn good job in Copa final after Messi sub. Maybe Paz should be given good minutes as a starter repeatedly.
2) finalize the backups for Tagli & Molina. Barco, Giay, Soler , Maffeo etc – they should get good minutes for repeated matches. Montiel still is a great sub option for a tournament especially because of his guaranteed Penalty kicks . But i dont think we should go for makeshift options like Foyth & Medina for full back subs.
3) Figure out who is our 4th CB & get him good minutes . It looks to be Balerdi for now. Again Ota shouldnt be a starter in WC26.
Anyone know why garnacho continues to get cut from the roster everytime theirs a match??
I’m still waiting to see him in action for at least 1-2 full games.. considering Argentina is practically qualified for the WC, wouldn’t it make sense to start giving him all the playing time??
Because he has been bang average lately and his poor finishing will eventually cost us! He is not national team material yet.
Thank you @SulaV, i appreciate the feed back.. I was assuming because he hasn’t had much minutes in ManU, but I figured he would still be called up by scaloni in hopes of giving him some action to help him find another club.. seems like he’s got one foot out the door from ManU..
seeing how scaloni is with some of his surprise call ups in the past, I thought to myself that’s something he might potentially do to help the kid out a bit..
Has been waiting for months to see Messi in the national jersey.