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Lautaro MARTINEZ of Inter talks about Lionel MESSI, Mauro ICARDI, Javier ZANETTI

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Lautaro MARTINEZ gave his thoughts on Mauro ICARDI, Javier ZANETTI and Lionel MESSI.

In an interview with La Nacion, the Argentina and Inter forward stated that he would like to play with Lionel MESSI, how Mauro ICARDI has helped him since joining the club and on Javier ZANETTI. Here’s what he had to say about Mauro ICARDI with full credit going to Calcio Mercato for the translations:

“He’s been helping me since my very first day here. He helped me to change some habits and he explained me what I had to do. We are very close, we get long on and off the pitch. He always tells me that I can call him anytime, his mobile is always on”.

Lautaro MARTINEZ spoke about Javier ZANETTI and Lionel MESSI:

“ZANETTI was waiting for me in the club’s headquarters when I arrived. He welcomed me and he keeps calling me to know how I feel and to tell me that I have to work hard, regardless my game time. MESSI? I’d ask him to play for his entire life and I hope he will return in the national team. I shared the dressing room with Diego MILITO in the past and one day I’d love to play with MESSI and other players of my national team. I’ve never played one single minute with him on the pitch but it’s one of my targets”.

Argentina’s Walter KANNEMANN linked to replace Diego GODIN at Atletico Madrid

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Walter KANNEMANN is being linked with a move to Atletico Madrid.

A report by Ole states that Argentina defender Walter KANNEMANN is wanted by Atletico Madrid to replace Diego GODIN who will be leaving the club. GODIN has strongly been linked with a move away from Atletico and the club is looking at KANNEMANN.

When asked about the rumors, here’s what KANNEMANN had to say:

“I don’t know, I have no idea about it. El cholo (Diego SIMEONE) was my coach at San Lorenzo. It was for a very short period of time. Now, I’m only thinking about Gremio and the Gaucho championship.”

Still only 27 years old, KANNEMANN has been capped three times for Argentina and has a release clause of $20 million.

Fernando GAGO to stop playing, will have new role at Boca Juniors

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Fernando GAGO has reportedly reached a mutual agreement with Boca Juniors to terminate his contract.

It hasn’t been the easiest of careers for Fernando GAGO. What started off with a lot of potential quickly went down due to his number of injuries. GAGO made a name for himself with Boca before joining Real Madrid and at one point had established himself in their midfield. But the injuries began and with it, he left on loan to AS Roma.

He would eventually find himself at Valencia and even on loan with Velez in Argentina but in 2013 he went back home to Boca.

The injuries continued to grow and per Luis FREGOSSI, he will no longer be a player for them but could be offered a role within the club.

Sub-20 squad shows that Argentina is still filled with young talent

For the past couple of years, I’ve been completely down on the present and future of the Argentina national team, as well as the overall state of soccer in the country. Not only was the AFA proving inept at doing simple things such as organizing the Superliga; the well of talent appeared to be running dry due to a neglection of the youth teams at the international level.

Everywhere I would turn to when watching high-profile matches, Argentinian stars were scarce. Sure, Lionel MESSI, Sergio AGÜERO, Paulo DYBALA and a few others popped up. But when I scoured through the rosters of big clubs, there were at most one or two Argentinian players showing up, while countries like Brazil, Spain and France littered these big clubs with incredibly talented players. While that’s still the case, Argentina seems to be on the upswing.

Giovani LO CELSO has been one of the best players in La Liga and the Copa Del Rey since joining Real Betis. Leandro PAREDES just made a huge move to PSG and will soon be a fixture in the starting lineup once he gets acclimated. Joaquin CORREA continues to make a lasting impression for a Lazio side fighting for a European spot and a spot in the Coppa Italia Final. Lautaro MARTÍNEZ has begun forcing Luciano Spalletti’s hand, as he’s been frequently used as an impact sub and should really be a staple in the starting eleven considering their offensive struggles.

What’s exciting about all of those players is that they’re all in their early- to mid-20s, and they still have their best soccer ahead of them. If we go even younger and focus on the players under 20 years old that Argentina is producing, the excitement grows even more. The Sudamericano Sub-20 has accentuated that.

Last night, the Argentina squad took down Venezuela with a convincing 3-0 victory. The win moved Argentina to second place in the final stage standings, comfortably ahead of the bottom two teams – Colombia and Brazil – who are five points back with just two match days left. A spot in the top four would ensure Argentina’s passage to the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland, while a spot in the top three also guarantees a spot in the 2019 Pan American Games. But this group appears hungry right now for the Sudamericano title, having rattled off two straight victories following an initial loss to Ecuador.

In yesterday’s 3-0 victory, San Lorenzo forward Adolfo GAICH netted a hat-trick. A 6’3″ aerial threat with plenty of skill on the ground, GAICH put it all on display; he used his power, heading ability and finishing prowess to put three in the back of the net. The final goal was set up with a brilliant through ball from midfielder Aníbal MORENO, a 19-year-old Newell’s Old Boys product whose game is reminiscent of Luka Modric (at least last night).

Mid-tournament, Atletico Madrid announced that center back Nehuen PEREZ would be joining the first-team following his return from the Sudamericano. The 18-year-old pitbull defender had been loaned out to Argentinos Juniors from Atletico, but they’ve been very impressed by him and need center back depth so they felt compelled to bring him back. The River Plate attacking duo of Julian ALVAREZ and Santiago SOSA has been a staple for sub-20 manager Fernando BATISTA. ALVAREZ is just 19 and made a substitute appearance in the Copa Libertadores Final. And then there’s Pedro DE LA VEGA, a 17-year-old wunderkind who has already established himself as a key contributor for Lanus in the Superliga and has been one of Argentina’s players of the tournament so far.

Even more encouraging than the play of all of those young talents is the fact that several highly touted prospects haven’t been able to break into the squad due to the performance of others. Facundo COLIDIO (who was the player of the tournament in last year’s COTIF Tournament), Thiago ALMADA and Jeronimo POURTAU are all highly regarded in Argentina and internationally, yet they weren’t included in yesterday’s starting lineup.

That sign of impressive depth should be a beacon of hope for Argentina fans who had grown skeptical about the incoming national team talent over the past several years. A Sudamericano title would just be the cherry on top.

Argentina coach Lionel SCALONI: “I have not talked to Lionel MESSI”

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Argentina coach Lionel SCALONI has stated that he hasn’t spoken to Lionel MESSI in a while.

With rumors coming out that Lionel MESSI would be returning to the Argentina team, coach SCALONI has stated that he hasn’t spoken to the captain. Speaking with Ole, here’s what SCALONI had to say:

“I have not talked to Messi for a while now. He has a match in a few days and we’ll see if he can play.”