Franco Mastantuono misses the World Cup with Argentina | OneFootball

The left-footed Real Madrid midfielder, who once wore Messi’s No. 10 in the qualifiers, will not be included in the final squad for the World Cup.

Argentina’s final squad for the 2026 World Cup would only be announced this Friday, but it has already emerged that there will be a major absence: Franco Mastantuono. The Real Madrid midfielder, who wore Lionel Messi’s No. 10 in his absence during the South American qualifiers, will not be called up by Lionel Scaloni to travel to the United States.

The reasons are purely football-related. Although he has been on the coaching staff’s radar since he was leaving defenders behind and scoring stunning goals in a River shirt, his limited role at Real Madrid has pushed him several spots back in the race for a place in the 26-man squad.

Scaloni has no doubt about the talent of the barely 18-year-old left-footed midfielder, whom he has praised on more than one occasion and even handed the historic shirt worn by figures such as Messi and Diego Armando Maradona. However, he knows that the youngster has not shown his best version on the pitch, affected by the crisis that has been hanging over Los Blancos for several months now.

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