Argentina captain Lionel Messi is set to make his return to action in the team’s final warm-up match before the FIFA World Cup 2026, with head coach Lionel Scaloni confirming that the superstar will feature against Iceland on Tuesday.
Messi missed Argentina’s 2-0 friendly win over Honduras on June 6 despite participating in the pre-match warm-up, as he continued his recovery from muscle fatigue in his left hamstring. The Inter Miami forward joined the national camp after experiencing discomfort during his club’s MLS fixture against the Philadelphia Union.
Scaloni: ‘Messi will play’
While confirming Messi’s availability, Scaloni said the coaching staff would carefully manage his workload to avoid any unnecessary risk before the World Cup.
“Messi will play, I just don’t know how many minutes. I still need to talk to him in today’s training, and we will see how many minutes he plays to avoid any type of risks. We will decide, but in principle he will play,” Scaloni said during a press conference.
The Argentina coach added that player minutes would be distributed carefully as the reigning world champions fine-tune their preparations.
“We’re going to distribute the minutes of the players who will play tomorrow to try to avoid any mishaps,” he said.
Injury updates boost Argentina camp
Scaloni also confirmed that Nico Paz, Nahuel Molina, and Gonzalo Montiel are available for selection after recovering from injuries that had forced them to train separately in recent days.
The coach provided encouraging updates on Julian Alvarez and Leandro Paredes, both of whom are progressing well in their recovery.
“Julian Alvarez is doing well; he has an ankle discomfort that’s going away,” Scaloni said. “Leandro Paredes is also coming along well; in the next few days, he’ll be able to rejoin the group.”
Argentina yet to replace Leonardo Balerdi
Argentina are still assessing their options to replace defender Leonardo Balerdi, who was ruled out of the World Cup after suffering a calf injury and subsequently leaving the squad.
“We’ll have a clearer picture tomorrow after the match regarding his replacement,” Scaloni said. “We can cover Balerdi’s position, but we are also looking at other options depending on how the rest of the injured players progress.”
The defending champions will begin their FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign against Algeria on June 16 before taking on Austria and Jordan in Group J.