“For the next match, the fair thing to do, and I think it will be, is for the boys who have not played these two games to play, because I need to see them and they deserve it,” said Lionel Scaloni in the press conference after the agonizing victory against Chile, in the match corresponding to the second date of Group A of the Copa América. Lautaro Martínez’s 1-0 in the 88th minute sealed Argentina’s second victory and, in addition, qualification for the quarterfinals of the tournament. The third match in the group stage will be against Peru this Saturday, June 29 at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami. The conditions of that match allow the coach to think about an alternative formation, a rotation, the inclusion of players who need to play and the exclusion of those who need to rest.
The possibility of Lionel Messi repeating the title in the last group game is slim. The guaranteed classification, the discomfort that drags on the adductor and the coach’s willingness to give minutes to those who have not yet played in the tournament make up a solid argument to justify the absence of the Rosario star in a venue that will regret his absence: Argentina will play in the city that beats to the rhythm of Messi and his current club, Inter Miami.
The alarm bells had been ringing in the first half, when the world’s best player was showing signs of pain in his right adductor and when he took advantage of a stoppage in play to seek medical assistance after a foul by Gabriel Suazo in the middle of the pitch. Messi finished the match and that represented a sign of calm. “I didn’t speak to Leo after the match. He finished playing. He ran with Ángel (Di María) and Lautaro (Martínez) for 50 metres and that’s the last image I have. I can’t say more because I didn’t see them,” Scaloni said in a press conference.
The coaching staff, for its part, has already made the decision to preserve him so as not to rush his rehabilitation and for him to be physically ready for the quarterfinal match, which will be played on Thursday, July 4 in Houston if the National Team finishes. the first phase of the tournament in the first position of their group. If she finishes second, she will do so on Friday the 5th in Arlington, Texas. Thus, Messi will have nine or ten days for his right adductor discomfort to disappear.
Scaloni is thinking of a formation without the number 10 and with several changes. The goal is an uncertainty: the chance of Dibu Martínez leaving the starting line-up is, in any case, slim. The goalkeeper from Mar del Plata has a goal. “I keep setting goals for myself. I want to play a hundred games for the National Team and have the biggest clean sheet in history,” he said at the beginning of 2024 on TyC Sports. For now, he has 30 clean sheets in 41 games for the Albiceleste, far from the 47 clean sheets that Chiquito Romero achieved in 96 appearances with Argentina, although with a much higher average. However, it is still not clear if he will finally give up his place under the three posts so that Gerónimo Rulli can get some minutes, when it already seems clear that Franco Armani is considered as the third goalkeeper.
There will be changes in defense. Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martínez played the 180 minutes of the cup at a very high level. Both would have a rest: Otamendi would return to the starting lineup as the second central marker and his partner will emerge from the fight between two former River players: Germán Pezzella and Lucas Martínez Quarta. In relation to the sides, Scaloni repeated a method in the first two duels: exhausting the modifications near the end of the game with a double change of the wings. Against Canada, Gonzalo Montiel and Nicolás Tagliafico entered in the 88th minute to replace Nahuel Molina and Marcos Acuña, respectively. Against Chile, Montiel and Acuña entered in the 82nd minute for Molina and Tagliafico. Against Peru, the chances grow that Montiel will start from the start and that Acuña will recover his left side.
In the middle of the field, another renovation. Exequiel Palacios, footballer for Bayer Leverkusen, a sensation team in Europe, could add his first minutes in the tournament to replace Rodrigo De Paul. Leandro Paredes, for his part, would return to the starting lineup to play in the central axis after having played against Canada and rested against Chile. The third factor in the midfield involves a struggle between Giovanni Lo Celso and Enzo Fernández, who played the two matches of the tournament without influencing the development of the game.
And in attack, there are surprises. It is almost certain that the tournament’s top scorer, Lautaro Martínez, will be included instead of Julián Álvarez, and that Alejandro Garnacho will make his debut in the Copa América. The doubt in attack is on the right of the attack: Scaloni is thinking about whether to respect Ángel Di María’s starting position and captaincy or if he prefers to give Valentín Carboni a chance, the youngest player in the squad – at 19 years and two months he is the fifth youngest in the Cup – and a gamble by the coach.
The line-up for the Argentine national team will be defined in the upcoming training sessions. “We are satisfied because now we will be able to enjoy a few days and let the boys who also deserve to play,” revealed the coach after the 1-0 against Chile.
For now, there are seven players who have not played in this Copa América: goalkeepers Armani and Rulli, defender Pezzella, midfielders Palacios and Guido Rodríguez, and attackers Garnacho and Carboni. In the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Scaloni boasts of having used all the field players: the only ones who did not participate in any match were the substitute goalkeepers, Armani and Rulli.
