The Argentina starting eleven has been announced and Lionel Messi is on the bench as Lautaro Martínez and Julián Álvarez start.
Lionel Messi will start the match for Argentina vs. Paraguay on the bench but is expected to play in the second half. Lionel Scaloni has named the following starting eleven:
Emiliano Martínez; Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero, Nicolás Otamendi, Nicolás Tagliafico; Rodrigo De Paul, Enzo Fernández, Alexis Mac Allister; Nicolás González; Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez.
Mario Kempes spoke about the comparison between Lautaro Martínez and Julián Álvarez.
Kempes was part of the 1978 Argentina national team which won the World Cup where he scored six goals. Speaking to TyC Sports, here is what he had to say when asked about Lautaro and Julián:
“Lautaro Martínez scores a lot of goals, Julián Álvarez, on top of scoring, is very annoying for the defenders.
“The truth is that we are not going to enter once more into the controversy of Batistuta and Crespo like we did with other coaches. Julian and Lautaro are two great number nines, great players.
“What happened is that Lautaro had that slump at the start of the World Cup in Qatar and then Julián came in and changes things a lot.
Lautaro showed at Inter that he is once again that nine that stood out in the national “team and scored many goals.
“But when it comes to analyzing the two, it must be said that besides scoring often, Julián is very annoying because he not only gets to the goal but he als oruns at rival defenders and scores. And in that aspect, they are very different.”
The World Cup winner also gave another interview, this time with DirectTVSports Argentina where he was asked about Julián Álvarez playing with Argentina and Manchester City:
“The impact that this kid has had is that he has truly shut the mouths of many who said: “Well, he comes from River, he’s a goal scorer and a great player but in England it is totally different.”
“He arrives in England, triumphs and shuts the mouths of those who did not believe in him. He comes in at the World Cup, performs, scores goals and gets along perfectly with Messi. He comes on as a substitute and scores goals, he starts and is the best on the pitch.”
Lionel Messi will not start for Argentina against Paraguay but Lautaro Martínez and Julián Álvarez will both be in the starting eleven for Argentina.
Messi will not start but will get some minutes. According to Gastón Edul, the Best player in the world will not start but will play 40 minutes or the entire second half.
Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni will also start both Lautaro Martínez and Julián Álvarez with Nicolás González. Here is the rumored starting eleven:
Emiliano Martínez; Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero, Nicolás Otamendi, Tagliafico; Rodrigo De Paul, Enzo Fernández, Alexis Mac Allister, Nicolás González; Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez
Lionel Scaloni held a press conference on Wednesday and he was asked about Lucas Esquivel, Sergio Romero and the Argentina team.
Scaloni had commented on if Lionel Messi will start for Argentina against Paraguay while also discussing the possibility of Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez starting together. In the same press conference, Scaloni was asked about 21 year old left back Lucas Esquivel. Here is what he had to say:
“Esquivel us a kid that we value, training more with us because it is a position that, with Huevo’s injury (Acuña) in the previous call up, he could be just right and we are interested in seeing him. He is the one we are looking at so that he can be part of the national team. Farías has not trained with us, he goes with Masche, but he has a huge future.”
In regards to Sergio Romero:
“I already answered about Chiquito and after that, he kept saving well. There is no doubt that he is at a good level, I am not anyone to say otherwise. Everybody appreciates him at the facilities, besides, he is a spectacular kid.
“He helped us a lot at the beginning of our cycle, the doors are open. Today, we believed that the boys who are here are doing well. If at any moment they give us reasons to change, we know that the doors are open.”
About the Argentina national team:
“Beyond results, beyond continuing to win, it is time to continue with the way we play, with the way we see football. Today we are getting everything in front of us but the wind can change.
“That is where we need to be as we are now, which is the idea. Logically, we have to take advantage of the moment, especially to bring in youngsters who can see how the older players train, to see our idea of the game.
“We have to take advantage so that everything stays the same. At the end of the day, the national team is there so that everyone can contribute their bit.”
Players from the U23 team being called up:
“Everyone knows that if the U23 team makes a call up, many times, the clubs do not send them because they think they are not worth it. So sometimes we make the call ups for the senior team and we put them there so they can be sent.”
And the match against Paraguay:
“I don’t know how Paraguay are preparing for the match, it could be with three center backs, with Junior Alonso on the left. We analyze how the team plays and we take our precautions. But the first idea is to play our game and we will think about the match based on what we want to do. We have players who can do different things and that’s what the match is all about.”
Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni spoke at a press conference on Wednesday about the possibility of both Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez playing together.
Lionel Scaloni had commented on Lionel Messi and if he will start for Argentina against Paraguay on Thursday but Scaloni was also asked about Alvarez and Martinez. Here is what he had to say:
“The nine’s have played together, in the previous press conference they told me they didn’t but they have played together from the start. I am open to many things, it will depend on the match and if we have think that they have to play together.
“It would not be an inconvenience, they are both nines but they are different and can play together. First, we are going to see what is best for the match and we will decide based on that.”
Scaloni was also asked about Alexis McAllister and Enzo Fernández:
“I don’t know if they will both play or if we will alternate. There’s also Leandro (Paredes) and Guido (Rodríguez). They can both play the same position. Both can gie us things, against Ecuador we started in one way and changed it. It can be positive for us.”
The coach also discussed the injuries in the team:
“We know that they are important losses but we know that those who come will try to do their best and that they are worthy players, who will try to earn their place. That is what we are looking for from them, that those who came because of injuries want to play and stay.”
He was also asked about Marcos Acuña and Gio Lo Celso:
“Acuña is coming from an injury, he played half in the last match and he is in conditions to be part of the call up and to play. We will evaluate if he will start or not because he has very few minutes under his belt, as well as Lo Celso who we value a lot. But he is also coming from an injury. We are not in favor of forcing them.”
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