Feature
Argentina arrive as reigning world and continental champions, and Lionel Scaloni has kept the band together — most of the 2022 heroes are still in the room, Messi included. The worry isn't talent but tiredness: a clutch of key men limped out of gruelling club seasons carrying knocks. The question is whether familiarity and fitness can coexist long enough to defend the crown.
Argentina are into the last 32. Job done in the group, and now the tournament really begins — one-and-done from here, every match a final.
Lionel Messi
Still the gravitational centre of this side, the man around whom every Argentine hope orbits.
Age profile
Club homes
Atletico Madrid6
Inter MiamiDefenders
Marseille2
Aston Villa1
Bayer Leverkusen1
Benfica1+13 more clubs
21 Other · 3 Premier League · +2 more
Experience
The most-capped head in the squad — Atletico Madrid.
Who's getting on the scoresheet.
