Final stop before the 2026 World Cup: Scaloni picks Argentina XI v Zambia | OneFootball

The Argentina national team faces its final match before the 2026 World Cup this Tuesday. Lionel Scaloni’s side will take on Zambia in what represents the last chance to fine-tune things ahead of the biggest tournament in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. After the narrow and heavily questioned 2-1 win over Mauritania last Friday, the coach appears to have the starting lineup almost fully decided.

In goal, Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez continues to have Scaloni’s full trust. The Mar del Plata native will be looking for personal redemption after being highly self-critical of the team’s defensive performance in the last match. To protect the box, Scaloni will lean on nostalgia and reliability, repeating the defensive line that reached glory in the 2022 Qatar final against France: Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero, Nicolás Otamendi, and Nicolás Tagliafico.

The coaching staff’s main doubt lies in central midfield. While Enzo Fernández and Alexis Mac Allister have their spots guaranteed, the third midfield place remains up in the air and will be decided at the last moment: Rodrigo De Paul and Leandro Paredes are battling neck and neck for a place in the starting eleven.

Up front comes the news fans had been waiting for most: Lionel Messi will start. The captain will be joined by Julián Álvarez and Thiago Almada, who, thanks to their solid performances, seem to have edged out other names to establish themselves as Argentina’s starting forwards in Group J, where Argentina will be alongside Algeria, Austria, and Jordan.

Argentina national team lineup

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.