Lionel Messi will return to Argentina’s national team for the South American World Cup qualifying matches against Venezuela and Bolivia. The 37-year-old star had missed recent matches because of an ankle injury. Coach Lionel Scaloni announced his squad Wednesday (Oct 2) for the matches at Venezuela on Oct 10 and five days later in Buenos Aires against Bolivia.
Messi did not play the two previous rounds after sustaining an injury in the Copa America final against Colombia. Argentina won 1-0.
Argentina leads South American qualifying with 18 points, followed by Colombia (16) and Uruguay (15). The top six teams will qualify for the 2026 World Cup, and the seventh position will play an international playoff for a berth.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Walter Benitez (PSV Eindhoven), Geronimo Rulli (Olympique Marseille), Juan Musso (Atletico Madrid)
Defenders: Gonzalo Montiel (Sevilla), Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur), German Pezzella (River Plate), Marcos Acuna (River Plate), Leonardo Balerdi (Olympique Marseille), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United), Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon)
Midfielders: Leandro Paredes (Roma), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea), Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis), Nicolas Paz (Como), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Rodrigo de Paul (Atletico Madrid), Valentin Carboni (Olympique Marseille)
Strikers: Thiago Almada (Botafogo), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Nicolas Gonzalez (Juventus), Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United), Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid), Paulo Dybala (Roma), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan)
