For Argentina’s South American World Cup qualifying matches against Venezuela and Bolivia, Lionel Messi will make a comeback to the national squad.
Due to an ankle ailment, the 37-year-old celebrity had to skip some recent games.
The team for the matches against Bolivia five days later in Buenos Aires and at home against Venezuela on October 10 was revealed by coach Lionel Scaloni on Wednesday.
After getting hurt in the Copa America final against Colombia, Messi was unable to participate in the first two rounds of play. 1-0 victory for Argentina.
With 18 points, Argentina is in first place in South American qualifying, followed by Uruguay (15) and Colombia (16). The top six teams will advance to the World Cup of 2026, while the seventh-place team will compete in an international playoff to secure a spot.
Squad
Goalkeepers: Juan Musso (Atletico Madrid), Walter Benítez (PSV Eindhoven), and Gerónimo Rulli (Olympique Marseille)
Defenders: Gonzalo Montiel (Sevilla), Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Cristian Romero (Tottenham), Germán Pezzella (River Plate), Marcos Acuña (River Plate), Leonardo Balerdi (Olympique Marseille), Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica), Lisandro Martínez (Manchester United), Nicolás Tagliafico (Lyon) are the defenders.
Midfielders: Leandro Paredes (Roma), Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis), Enzo Fernández (Chelsea), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Rodrigo de Paul (Atletico Madrid), Valentín Carboni (Olympique Marseille), and Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool) are midfielders.
Strikers: Thiago Almada (Botafogo), Paulo Dybala (Roma), Julián Álvarez (Atletico Madrid), Nicolás González (Juventus), Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United), Paulel Messi (Inter Miami), Lautaro Martínez (Inter Milan) are the strikers.
