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Argentina has bitter memories of 1994, the last time the United States hosted the World Cup.
After the second match of the group stage, national icon Diego Maradona was expelled from the tournament for failing a doping test. Maradona would never play in a World Cup match again and Argentina was eliminated in the round of 16.
Thirty-two years later, the South American powerhouse is hoping for a happier ending for Maradona’s heir, Lionel Messi, who will turn 39 this month and is expected to retire from international soccer after the curtain falls on the 2026 World Cup, which the United States is co-hosting with Mexico and Canada.
If he and Argentina manage to retain the World Cup trophy they won four years ago in Qatar, they will become the first team to win back-to-back titles since Brazil in 1962. It would also strengthen the claim of those already calling Messi the greatest player of all time.
“I love playing soccer and I’m going to do it until I can’t anymore,” Messi told Argentine journalist Joaquín “Pollo” Álvarez in an interview on YouTube. “I’m competitive, I like to win at everything, sometimes I don’t even let my kids win at video games. It’s just my nature and what led me to achieve everything I have.”
(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
After more than 20 years playing for Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Miami, Messi’s body is showing signs of wear and tear. A week before what will be his record sixth World Cup, he is recovering from a hamstring problem that led to him being substituted during Inter Miami’s final game before the tournament on May 24.
The Argentine captain worked alone at the team’s base camp in Kansas City this week.
“We would all have liked Messi to arrive without problems, but that is not the case. Not only him, most of the players have not yet fully recovered,” Argentine coach Lionel Scaloni told DSports, a Latin American television network.
Fitness Concerns
Goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, hero of two penalty shoot-outs in 2022, including the final against France, suffered a fracture to the ring finger of his right hand during the Europa League final while playing for Aston Villa.
Defender Cristian “Cuti” Romero is recovering from a knee injury he suffered in mid-April while playing for Tottenham. Right backs Nahuel Molina and Gonzalo Montiel are dealing with muscle injuries, as is midfielder Leandro Paredes.
Argentina, also champions in 1978 and 1986, will play its first group stage match on June 16 against Algeria in Kansas City. Next in Group J are Austria on June 22 and Jordan on June 27 in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas.
Scaloni has 17 of the 26 players who won the 2022 World Cup, although several are not in optimal physical condition.
“Why change them if they don’t deserve it? We have always been honest with them. The players who are here today have shown us that they want to be here. And second, their level has not gone down,” Scaloni said.
Argentina won the Copa América in 2024 and finished leading the qualifying group for the South American World Cup.
Atlético Madrid striker Julián Álvarez is key to Scaloni’s attack, while Barcelona, Arsenal and PSG are reportedly vying for his signature for next season. The coach has also brought in three debutants: midfielder Valentín Barco, recently signed by Chelsea, and forwards Nicolás Paz, a key player for Italian Como, and Juan Manuel López, top scorer for Brazilian Palmeiras.
A notable absence compared to four years ago is that of Ángel Di María, who retired from the national team in 2024. In addition to Messi, he was instrumental in Argentina’s success in Qatar.
“It is impossible to take Di María’s place. He and Messi are irreplaceable,” said Scaloni.
It is difficult to imagine a future without Messi
Always soft-spoken, Messi has tried to lower expectations of another World Cup title.
“We have to get excited, as Argentines always do, but we also have to know that there are other favorites ahead who are in better shape,” he said.
Messi already holds the record for most World Cup appearances (26) and needs four more goals to surpass German Miroslav Klose’s World Cup record of 16 goals.
While he hasn’t explicitly said he will retire from the national team after the World Cup, he dropped a big hint last September when he talked about the team’s qualifying match against Venezuela in Buenos Aires as his last competitive home match with Argentina.
“It was very emotional knowing that this was my last competitive game here,” he said after the game at the Monumental Stadium. “I’ve been through a lot in this stadium, some great moments and some difficult ones, but it’s always special to play in front of our fans.”
Scaloni, like most Argentines, is also excited at the thought of a team without Messi.
“I like to think that he will continue playing because otherwise you get sad, like what happened with Diego (Maradona),” Scaloni said in an interview published on the website of the South American Football Confederation CONMEBOL. “They are players who have made history in football and thinking that they are not going to play anymore doesn’t leave you in peace. I prefer to think about the present.”
Information from The Associated Press.
