Argentina will face Brazil without Messi
The Argentine star was left out of Lionel Scaloni’s squad due to an adductor injury. Otamendi is an option for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers
Red alert for the Argentine national team. Lionel Messi , struggling with an adductor injury, has been scratched from Lionel Scaloni’s squad for the matches against Uruguay and Brazil , in the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
The 37-year-old playmaker felt muscle discomfort during Inter Miami ‘s 2-1 win at Atlanta United, but played the full 90 minutes and scored a great goal. After the match on matchday four of the MLS, further tests revealed an adductor injury, which forced him to withdraw from the final call-up for the national team .
Lionel Messi ‘s physical condition has been managed with tweezers by Inter Miami managers since the start of the season. Increasingly susceptible to muscle fatigue, the Argentine star has already missed three matches for the Americans since February.
Paulo Dybala was also left out of Scaloni’s squad due to injury. In addition to the two creative players, Claudio Echeverri ( Manchester City ), Alejandro Garnacho ( Manchester United ), Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis), Francisco Ortega ( Olympiakos ) and Gonzalo Montiel ( River Plate ) were left out of the 33-man squad.
On the other hand, Benfica central defender Nicólas Otamendi is among the 26 chosen for the matches against Uruguay (March 21, in Montevideo) and Brazil (March 26, at El Monumental, in Buenos Aires).
