The Argentina national team has officially unveiled its 25-man squad set to compete in the 2026 World Cup. The roster announcement confirms that global superstar Lionel Messi will make history by appearing in his sixth World Cup tournament, despite concerns surrounding a recent hamstring injury sustained while playing for Inter Miami.
Head coach Lionel Scaloni faced several difficult tactical decisions in finalizing this lineup. In a surprising turn of events, rising talents like Gianluca Prestianni and Franco Mastantuono were excluded from the final list, while Alejandro Garnacho also failed to make the cut. Despite these high-profile omissions, Scaloni has carefully balanced the squad by integrating promising young players alongside established veterans, ensuring Argentina maintains the depth required to defend their championship title.
Goalkeepers
- Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
- Geronimo Rulli (Marseille)
- Juan Musso (Atletico Madrid)
Defenders
- Gonzalo Montiel (River Plate)
- Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid)
- Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United)
- Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica)
- Leonardo Balerdi (Marseille)
- Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur)
- Facundo Medina (Marseille)
- Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon)
Midfielders
- Leandro Paredes (Boca Juniors)
- Rodrigo de Paul (Inter Miami)
- Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen)
- Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea)
- Alex Mac Allister (Liverpool)
- Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis)
- Valentin Barco (Strasbourg)
Forwards
- Lionel Messi (Inter Miami)
- Nicolas Paz (Como)
- Thiago Almada (Atletico Madrid)
- Giuliano Simeone (Atletico Madrid)
- Lautaro Martinez (Inter)
- Jose Manuel Lopez (Palmeiras)
- Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid)
Summary
Argentina has officially unveiled its 25-man squad for the 2026 World Cup. Global superstar Lionel Messi is set to make history, participating in his sixth tournament despite concerns over a recent hamstring injury sustained while playing for Inter Miami.
Head coach Lionel Scaloni made difficult tactical decisions, notably excluding rising talents like Gianluca Prestianni, Franco Mastantuono, and Alejandro Garnacho. Scaloni has carefully balanced the squad by integrating promising young players with established veterans to defend their championship title.