“La Scaloneta” – Messi’s admirers have become teammates

Doha. In an emergency, someone like Ángel di María lies behind the wall. All for Argentina! He is 34 years old, di María has been there almost as long as Lionel Messi. The first international match in 2008, since then 126 have been added.

Argentine sports newspaper Olé recently praised him as “a byword” for the team. However, his presence this Saturday (20:00 CET) in the round of 16 match of the World Cup in Qatar against Australia is questionable. Born in Rosario like Messi, di María has problems with his thigh muscles.

The Argentine Scaloni has rotated a lot so far

So it could be that Lionel Scaloni changes team. Once again. And that, together with Messi in World Cup form, he has also become a constant in this Argentine team. After the 2-1 defeat at the start, the Albiceleste coach swapped five players on the pitch for the starting eleven against Mexico. Four against Poland.

“We have 26 players who can play, I always say that,” he stresses. And so there are a number of alternatives available should di María actually drop out. Including someone like Paulo Dybala. When he joined AS Roma from Juventus, di Mariá joined Juve from Paris Saint-Germain as his successor.

Dybala risked missing the World Cup due to injury. In the previous three games, the 34-year-old selector hasn’t been used at all. “Scaloni’s reinforcement for the future”, recently headlined “Olé”.

An example of this is Dybala in “La Scaloneta”, a name that the Argentine team also bears in reference to its 44-year-old coach, who initially assumed the position only after the preliminary round of the 2018 World Cup ad interim and practically as an emergency solution.

Last World Cup for Messi

And there are other examples in the team that also show that there are talents that are rising to Argentina for the time after Messi. Because there won’t be another World Cup with Messi.

Before that, he will play his 1,000th competitive match this Saturday. If it finally works out with the World Cup dream, he will also be a World Cup record holder with 26 World Cup matches, ahead of Lothar Matthäus (25).

An example from the next generation is Julián Álvarez. 22 years old, he moved to Manchester City this year. With his first World Cup goal in a 2-0 win against Poland, the striker fulfilled another dream.

His assist provider Enzo Fernández, the 21-year-old and sought-after striker from Benfica Lisbon, managed the 2-0 goal against Mexico. The two, for example, know each other very well and previously played together at River Plate.

Argentina it’s about to change

And they both have something else in common that they probably share with almost all Argentines. Admiration for Messi. A video circulated in the Argentine media in which Álvarez was asked when he was eleven who his idol was. Answer: “Messi. My dream is to play with Messi at the World Cup.”

And Fernández made a post on social networks in 2016. Immediately after Messi’s resignation from the national team after another Copa America final loss, he wrote to the superstar with imploring and emotional words: “Lionel, please think about it to stay” .

Messi returned, winning his first major title with Argentina at the Copa America in 2021. Fernández was not in the squad at the time, but Álvarez had at least played one group match. Argentina won the final 1-0 in Rio de Janeiro’s legendary Maracanã against hosts and South American rivals Brazil. The goalscorer’s name was Ángel di María.

The planned trainings:

Argentines: 23 Damián Martínez – 4 Montiel, 25 Lisandro Martínez, 19 Otamendi, 8 Acuna – 18 Rodriguez – 7 De Paul, 20 Mac Allister – 9 Álvarez, 10 Messi, 22 Lautaro Martínez

Australia: 1 Ryan – 2 Degenek, 19 Souttar, 4 Rowles, 16 Behich – 13 Mooy, 22 Irvine – 7 Leckie, 14 McGree, 23 Goodwin – 15 Duke

Schiedsrichter: Szymon Marciniak (Poland)

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