Julián or Nico González? Scaloni's two doubts for Argentina v Austria

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·20 June 2026

Julián or Nico González? Scaloni's two doubts for Argentina v Austria

The Argentina national team completed another training session at the Compass Minerals National Performance Center in Kansas, focused on the crucial clash next Monday at 2:00 p.m. against Austria in Dallas, for the second matchday of World Cup Group J. Unlike previous days, head coach Lionel Scaloni decided that this Saturday’s practice would be held strictly behind closed doors to fine-tune the tactical details.

The focus of the day was on Gonzalo Montiel’s physical progress. After raising concerns, the right-back showed notable improvement, trained on the field in boots alongside the group, and managed to clear up the biggest doubts. Although Nahuel Molina is shaping up as the starter on the flank, the minor nature of Montiel’s discomfort will allow him to be on the bench against the Europeans and even be at 100% for the third match against Jordan.

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The two tactical doubts the coach is weighing

With the core of the team settled after the emphatic 3-0 win in the opener against Algeria, Scaloni is considering introducing two strategic changes to counter the intense high press proposed by the Austrian side:

On the wings: Nicolás González has a strong chance of entering the starting lineup in place of Thiago Almada, providing greater explosiveness to attack the space behind the opposing defense.
Up front: The battle for the center-forward spot is back on, with Julián Álvarez fighting neck and neck for the position in an attempt to take the starting role from Lautaro Martínez.

The core that remains and those waiting for their debut

The rest of the starting structure would not undergo changes compared to the World Cup debut. Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez will guard the goal; Cristian Romero, Lisandro Martínez, and Facundo Medina will complete the back line; while the midfield will once again belong to Rodrigo De Paul, Enzo Fernández, and Alexis Mac Allister. In attack, captain Lionel Messi will once again lead the team in search of continuing to break historic records.

Likewise, the coaching staff received good news from the medical department: if they maintain the recovery pace shown in recent hours, both Leandro Paredes and Nicolás Tagliafico are ready to log their first official minutes in this World Cup.

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