“Nicolás Otamendi means a lot to us. He has been a huge help throughout this whole time. He is a very important player and will be remembered for everything he has given to the Argentine national team. Tomorrow he will be the captain.”
Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni spoke at a press conference before Argentina’s World Cup qualifying match againat Ecuador.
Lionel Scaloni held a press conference on Monday where he spoke about the young players. Here is what he had to say:
“We believe it is important to see other players in tomorrow’s game. The idea is to make some changes because I think those who have played less deserve to have some time on the field.
“Recently, young players have emerged who can give us different options. The team’s identity is always the same, regardless of who plays.”
The Argentina national team will play Ecuador on Tuesday in the team’s last World Cup qualifier.
“It was a lesson. I think everyone plays to win. We know how good Argentina’s team is. We went there to play, we tried and we gave it our all.
“They were having a night where everyone was Messi. There was nothing we could do, that’s all. Thank God we’ve already qualified for the World Cup. It’s not the end of the world because we lost.”
Lionel Messi’s formative rights are entering the digital era. Newell’s Old Boys has announced a partnership with Win Investments, a company specialized in the tokenization of training rights in football. The agreement, carried out with the support of the Argentine Professional Football League, includes 20 players developed at Newell’s, among them Messi, Manchester United defender Lisandro Martínez, and Boca Juniors forward Brian Aguirre.
Win’s system converts players’ training rights into digital tokens that can be purchased by users. When a player is transferred, token holders receive a proportional share of the transfer fee, while the formative club gains access to early financing.
“For Win Investments it is a great honor that the best player in history is now digitalized on the platform,” said Santiago Roncoroni, Head of Commercial and Marketing at Win Investments. “From this alliance, anyone will be able to own a percentage of Leo’s next transfer, financing Newell’s, his formative club.”
Roncoroni added that the initiative highlights how technology is opening new opportunities in football. “Thanks to the use of technology, this possibility was unlocked so that what before only happened in games or simulations can now happen in reality.”
Although Messi’s token may not carry high resale value due to his age and the limited likelihood of major transfers, it is expected that many users will purchase it symbolically as a way of owning a piece connected to the greatest player of all time.
Win Investments is already active in eight countries, with agreements with 17 clubs and 135 players tokenized, including Argentina internationals Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez, Alexis Mac Allister, and Nicolás Tagliafico. The company manages over US$ 5.4 million in investable assets and has 55,000 registered users. According to its data, 20 footballers have been transferred through this mechanism, generating an average return of 14.8% in about 174 days from the launch of each token.
Reflecting on the broader impact, Roncoroni explained: “Before the creation of Win Investments, we saw people looking for ways to feel close to the world of sports. That is why sports betting grew so much in recent years. This new opportunity shows a new path of participation, where beyond each person’s reward, there is a social purpose—financing formative clubs so they can continue developing players.”
Alongside the Newell’s agreement, Win also announced the launch of its own utility token, $WINS, built on the Ethereum network. Holders will gain access to exclusive benefits on the platform and take part in community decisions. “The launch of the Win Token ($WINS) is a natural step in our growth,” Roncoroni said. “Not only do we digitalize players’ rights, but we also give the community an active role in building this new sports ecosystem.”
In 2018, Lionel Scaloni was hired by the AFA as interim coach of the Argentina national team. His first match in charge was against Guatemala at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.
Gerónimo Rulli; Renzo Saravia, Germán Pezzella, Ramiro Funes Mori, Nicolás Tagliafico; Giovani Lo Celso, Leandro Paredes, Exequiel Palacios; Cristian Pavón, Giovanni Simeone and Gonzalo Martínez
Alan Franco, Walter Kannemann, Santiago Ascacíbar, Franco Vázquez, Matías Vargas and Franco Cervi were substituted into the match.
Franco Armani, Sergio Romero, Marcos Acuña, Fabricio Bustos, Leonel Di Plácido, Rodrigo Battaglia, Ángel Correa, Maximiliano Meza, Paulo Dybala and Mauro Icardi were on the bench.
Gonzalo Martínez scored the first goal of the match, a penalty kick to give Argentina the 1-0 lead. Giovani Lo Celso scored from the edge of the penalty area and Giovanni Simeone scored Argentina’s last goal of the match.
Five of the eleven players in the starting eleven won the World Cup with Giovani Lo Celso still part of the team. From the players called-up, seven are still part of the Argentina national team.
Lionel Scaloni would go on to win the World Cup, a Finalissima and two Copa America titles.
