Argentina will be playing without their captain Lionel Messi for the next two World Cup qualifiers. World champions Argentina announced their captainless squad for next month’s two matches. This decision of the Argentine Football Association (AFA) has been made because Lionel Messi has not yet fully recovered from the injury sustained in the Copa America final.
Messi left the field after suffering a foot injury in the Copa final last month. After that, it is known that the captain of Argentina will have to stay out of the field for a long time. Due to which Messi did not have a place in the World Cup qualifying team. Also, goalkeeper Franco Armani and winger Ángel Di María are definitely not in the squad as they retire from international football after the Copa America.
Along with them, Exequiel Palacios is not in the team. Defenders Marcos Acuña and Lucas Martínez Quarta did not get a chance. Despite rumours, Paulo Dybala did not have a place in the team.
Argentina will play their seventh match of the 2026 World Cup qualifier against Chile in Buenos Aires on September 5. The three-time world champions will play their eighth match four days later against the hosts in Colombia.
New players in Argentina qualifier team
Four footballers who are waiting to debut in the Argentina national team jersey have received a call this season. They are two forwards Giuliano Simeone and Valentín Castellanos and two midfielders Ezequiel Fernández and Matías Soulé.
Lionel Scaloni announced two new faces in the 28-man squad – Valentín Castellanos and Matías Soulé. Castellanos, the 25 years old forward, plays for Serie A club Lazio. Forward Soulé, who has just joined another Italian club Roma, is 21 years old. This forward played in Argentina’s age group.
After 6 rounds of qualifiers in the CONMEBOL region, Argentina is at the top. The team has 15 points in 6 matches. Uruguay is second with 13 points from the draw. 10 teams from the CONMEBOL region are participating in the qualifiers of the double league system. Each team will play 18 matches each. The top six teams in the points table will play directly in the 2026 World Cup. The seventh team will also have a chance to pass the playoffs to book a ticket to the World Cup organised by the United States-Canada-Mexico.
Argentina qualifiers team lineup
Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martínez, Walter Daniel Benítez, Gerónimo Rulli, Juan Musso.
Defenders: Gonzalo Montiel, Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero, Germán Pezzella, Leonardo Balerdi, Nicolás Otamendi, Lisandro Martínez, Nicolás Taliafico, Valentín Barco.
Midfielders: Leandro Paredes, Guido Rodríguez, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández, Giovani Lo Celso, Ezequiel Fernández, Rodrigo De Paul.
Forwards: Nicolás González, Alejandro Garnacho, Matías Soulé, Giuliano Simeone, Valentín Carboni, Julián Álvarez, Lautaro Martínez, Valentín Castellanos.
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