Argentina play against Venezuela in the World Cup qualifiers at La Bombonera with Lionel Messi set to start.

Lionel Messi returns to La Bombonera, the home of Boca Juniors as Argentina play their final home match of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. Messi is set to start with Alexis Mac Allister of Brighton also in the rumored eleven.

Coach Lionel Scaloni will be without four players who are suspended. Those four being Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez, Cristian Romero, Emiliano Buendía and Gio Lo Celso. All four are suspended for this match and the next qualifier against Ecuador for having broken Brazilian COVID protocols.

Scaloni has already stated that Franco Armani will be the goalkeeper for the match. With no Lisandro Martínez who is injured, Germán Pezzella is rumored to start alongside Nicolás Otamendi. Marcos Acuña injured means Nicolás Tagliafico starts and Gonzalo Montiel is suspended for this match as Molina gets the start.

Leandro Paredes and Rodrigo De Paul keep their places in midfield and with the suspended Lo Celso unable to play, rumors out of Argentina have Alexis Mac Allister starting. Up front, Ángel Di María is unfit and Lautaro Martínez tested positive for COVID, with rumors stating that Nicolás González and Joaquín Correa will start alongside Lionel Messi. Here is the rumored eleven:

Armani; Molina, Pezzella, Otamendi, Tagliafico; De Paul, Paredes, Alexis Mac Allister; Messi, Joaquín Correa and Nicolás González

Here are the players who are available for the World Cup qualifier:

Goalkeepers:
Franco Armani (River Plate)
Juan Musso (Atalanta)
Geronimo Rulli (Villarreal)

Defenders:
Juan Foyth (Villarreal)
Nahuel Molina (Udinese)
Germán Pezzella (Real Betis)
Lucas Martínez Quarta (Fiorentina)
Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica)
Nicolás Tagliafico (Ajax)

Midfielders:
Franco Carboni (Inter)
Leandro Paredes (Paris Saint-Germain)
Guido Rodríguez (Real Betis)
Rodrigo De Paul (Atletico Madrid)
Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen)
Luka Romero (Lazio)
Alexis Mac Allister (Brighton)
Valentin Carboni (Inter)
Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United)
Nicolás Paz (Real Madrid)
Tiago Geralnik (Villarreal)
Manuel Lanzini (West Ham United)

Forwards:
Ángel Correa (Atletico Madrid)
Matias Soulé (Juventus)
Lucas Ocampos (Sevilla)
Nicolás González (Fiorentina)
Joaquin Correa (Inter)
Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain)
Lucas Boyé (Elche)
Julián Álvarez (River Plate)

Unavailable:
Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez (Aston Villa) – Suspended
Emiliano Buendía (Aston Villa) – Suspended
Cristian “Cuti” Romero (Tottenham Hotspur) – Suspended
Gio Lo Celso (Villarreal) – Suspended
Lisandro Martínez (Ajax) – Injured
Gonzalo Montiel (Sevilla) – Suspended
Marcos Acuña (Sevilla) – Injured
Alejandro Papu Gómez (Sevilla) – Injured
Lautaro Martínez (Inter) – COVID
Ángel Di Maria (Paris Saint-Germain) – Injured, not expected to start

As we reported, some of the younger players on the team have a chance to make the bench for the match. Alejandro Garnacho of Manchester United has a chance to make the bench. Here are the kick off times:

Argentina 🇦🇷 vs. Venezuela 🇻🇪 World Cup qualifier kick off time:

🇨🇦🇺🇸 7:30 pm Eastern
🇨🇦🇺🇸 4:30 pm West Coast
🇬🇧 11:30 pm Friday
🇫🇷 12:30 am Saturday
🇱🇧 1:30 am Saturday
🇸🇦 2:30 am Sarurday
🇦🇪 3:30 am Saturday
🇮🇳 5:00 am Saturday
🇧🇩 5:30 am Saturday
🇲🇾 7:30 am Saturday pic.twitter.com/KR3np20Kgj

— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) March 25, 2022

Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni commented on the World Cup draw, Sergio Agüero and the friendly matches.

Lionel Scaloni spoke about several topics during Thursday’s press conference. From Lionel Messi and Franco Armani starting in Friday’s World Cup qualifier to the youth players on the team and to the absences of Lautaro Martínez and Paulo Dybala for these World Cup qualifying matches.

Scaloni also spoke about the World Cup draw on April 1 in Qatar and Argentina. Laughing about having to wear a suit as it’s protocol, here is what he had to say:

“Putting on the suit is complicated for me, I like to be comfortable, haha. Whatever happens, it’s going to be difficult, I’m not going to do the math.

“Whatever happens, happens. When the draw ends, we have to say that it’s difficult because it is impossible for it to be good. You have to play against everyone, to do it in the best way possible. A World Cup is a unique occasion and it’s so unpredictable that one doesn’t know what can happen.

“If I have to make a wish for the draw it’s that it brings me directly to the round of 16, ha!”

The Argentina national team coach also spoke about Sergio Agüero and his role with the team for the World Cup:

“It’s more than clear that he is well received here. I spoke with him and it’s important that we know the role he can play so that he doesn’t come here just to come here. Because it won’t do him any good either. I was clear with what I wanted from him, we talked about it and I would like him to be with us.

“I would like him to be around his team mates, to help with problems, anything that could happen in a World Cup. Typcial things that someone who is close to the players can do. After that, I don’t think there is a better image than Sergio to represent Argentine football.”

In regards to the friendly matches:

“The fixtures for European football are going to end between the 15 and the 22 and the match against Italy is on the first. Our idea is that as soon as they are done, we get together to have seven or eight days of training. And after that, from that match, we see what other rival we can play.

“The guys are coming after a long season and it’s not a question of us having them for 25 days for them to lose 15 days of vacation. You have to play a bit with that, wanting us to train but not keeping them from being focused and robbing them of their vacations. Which could take its toll on us in the future.”

Alexis Mac Allister is set to start for Argentina in the World Cup qualifier.

Mac Allister will get his first start for the Argentina national team on Friday at La Bombonera. Per Gastón Edul, Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni has selected Mac Allister over Exequiel Palacios in midfield to play alongside Rodrigo De Paul and Leandro Paredes.

As we reported earlier, Lionel Scaloni has already stated that in the absence of Emiliano Martinez against Venezuela, it will be Franco Armani as the goalkeeper. Here is the rumored eleven:

Armani; Molina, Pezzella, Otamendi, Tagliafico; De Paul, Paredes, Alexis Mac Allister; Messi, Joaquín Correa and Nico González

Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni has spoken about the youth players that have been called to the national team.

Lionel Scaloni has seven youth players in the team. Rumors have surfaced that Scaloni had called them up because many of them are eligible to play for different national teams, not just for Argentina. Scaloni spoke at a press conference on Thursday where he commented about Lionel Messi and stated that Franco Armani will start against Venezuela in Friday’s World Cup qualifying match. However, he also spoke about the youth. Here is what he had to say:

“About the youth players, I want to clarify one thing and I believe it’s important to say. These kids, no matter how much they play with the Argentine national team shirt tomorrow, they are not blocked to play with Argentina.

“Here, there’s no kind of blocking. We want these kids to come, to train with the Argentina U20 team, with the senior team, to see what the atmosphere with the Argentina national team is, the training ground at Ezeiza and in the next call-up, they have the opportunity to decide. But we are not blocking them, we are not taking any player, that’s not anyone’s idea.

“These are kids that are good, who can make the leap in quality and we can call them up, nothing else. The decision is theirs, they can still represent other countries. Seeing the conditions they have, we cannot look the other way and we have to take advantage of the fact that they can play for our national team. We are very happy with how they have been.”

The seven youth players that have been called up to the team are:

Franco Carboni (Inter)
Luka Romero (Lazio)
Valentin Carboni (Inter)
Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United)
Nicolás Paz (Real Madrid)
Tiago Geralnik (Villarreal)
Matias Soulé (Juventus)