Countdown to the defense of the crown of the Argentine National Team, which this Thursday will debut in the United States in the 2024 edition of the Copa América against Canada, at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, for the first date of Group A. Then will be measured against Chile and Peru.
Waiting for what coach Lionel Scaloni will say this Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. at a press conference, and after a new training session on the Kennesaw State University campus, Leandro Paredes gained a lot of ground in the midfield, where Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández and Gio Lo Celso are still fighting for a place, while the other doubts are Angel Di María or Nicolás González and Lautaro Martínez or Julián Alvarez.
The only one confirmed in midfield is Rodrigo De Paul, who finds it difficult to imagine the team without the presence of captain Lionel Messi in the future. “I’m afraid of the day Messi is no longer in the National Team. I always talk about it with him. With him everything is easier. All our comforts are thanks to him. He is the basis of all this.”
In dialogue with Telemundo, the Atlético Madrid player confided: “He always tells me: ‘You can pick up the phone the day the National Team is missing something and I will be there. I will always be part of you.'”
It goes without saying that the footballer who emerged in Racing and La Pulga are buddies in the Argentine concentrations: together they achieved the titles of the Copa América 2021, the Finalissima 2022 and the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
Although there is no retirement date for the Rosario star in the National Team, according to his own statements that day would not be far away, since on several occasions he did not guarantee that he would play in the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
Messi remembers
For his part, the Argentine captain recalled the sad situation he had to go through during the 2011 Copa América. In the streaming program Ready for Everything, hosted by his nephew Tomás, Messi was asked about the most ingenious insult he received: “In the Copa América in Argentina, when we played in Santa Fe, they said everything to me and the entire team; it was quite hard. They insulted me in all colors.
On that occasion, the Albiceleste drew goalless in the group stage against Colombia in a very poor match, and was eliminated in the quarterfinals against Uruguay on penalties. Both matches, in which there was a very tense atmosphere, were played at the Colón stadium in Santa Fe.
The happiness of “Chiqui”
In turn, Claudio Tapia also referred to his bond with Messi. “The truth is that every time I see him, I feel what all Argentines feel: happiness. As long as he feels good and continues to enjoy himself, he will continue to do so. We are happy that he continues to feel all those things for the National Team,” declared the president of AFA in Olé, and added: “It is a relationship that we can call friendship. It is good for us to share. It is a great group, he is a great leader, he has the charisma and one enjoys it.”
“Chiqui” completed his impressions of the Rosario star: “Before the World Cup it was thought that Qatar was the last competition that we were going to be able to enjoy and two years have passed; we are two years away from the next one… Enjoy the Copa América , that he enjoys defending the title and that he continues playing, which does us a lot of good.
Notes on the rival
Canada has been experiencing great growth in recent years and will seek to cause a big surprise in the opening match. The great figure of him is the left back of Bayern Munich, Alphonso Davies, who despite working as a defender has great projection.
It will be the first time that Argentines and Canadians meet in an official tournament. The only precedent was a friendly in 2010, prior to the World Cup in South Africa, where the national team – led by Diego Armando Maradona at the time – beat the Americans 5-0 at the Monumental, with a double from Maxi Rodríguez and contributions from Angel Di María, Carlos Tevez and Sergio Agüero.
The starting 11 was made up of Sergio Romero; Nicolás Burdisso, Gabriel Heinze, Nicolás Otamendi, Jonás Gutiérrez; Di María, Javier Mascherano, Javier Pastore, Rodríguez; Gonzalo Higuaín and Carlos Tevez. On that occasion, Maradona preferred to preserve Messi against an opponent who posed practically no risk.
2024-06-18 23:57:10
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