Balerdi, Senesi and Medina make their mark for Argentina after Cuti injury | OneFootball

Two months before the start of the World Cup, Cristian Romero’s injury, which forced him to leave the field against Tottenham, set off alarm bells for the Argentina national team. This Monday, the news that he has a lateral ligament injury in his right leg that will only require between six and eight weeks of recovery brought some relief. Even so, he will arrive just in time for the debut, so the coaching staff has Leonardo Balerdi as the main option, while Marcos Senesi and Facundo Medina are battling for a spot on the list.

As reported by TyC Sports, coach Lionel Scaloni has already settled on 22 of the 26 names who will represent the world champion at the biggest tournament, and despite this setback, Cuti will be in the final squad. However, his inactivity is allowing those who were behind him to gain ground. First of all, Balerdi is increasing his chances of fighting for a starting spot at the beginning of the World Cup in case the coaching staff chooses not to risk the Tottenham man, who would arrive at the June 16 debut against Algeria with little match fitness. In addition, he is the only right-footed center back left (not counting Otamendi).

Further behind, the former San Lorenzo defender and the player with a past at Talleres de Córdoba are emerging as the main options to take the place of the fifth center back traveling to Kansas as one of the alternatives, since Juan Foyth ruptured his Achilles tendon in January and was ruled out. So far, the picture is as follows: besides Cuti, a lock for the squad, everything indicates that Nicolás Otamendi, Lisandro Martínez, and Balerdi will be called up. A fifth center back would join them.

The one with the best chance of going to the tournament to be held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada is Senesi, who is 28 years old and plays for Bournemouth in the Premier League. The man from Entre Ríos joined the English club in mid-2022 from Feyenoord and established himself as a starter in central defense. He is also one of the vice-captains when leader Adam Smith is not on the field.

This season, Senesi has played 33 matches, only two as a substitute, and missed just one game due to yellow-card accumulation. He was also called up for the Albiceleste’s most recent friendly tours and is coming off a start in the 2-1 win over Mauritania at La Bombonera, a match in which he played 61 minutes.

Meanwhile, Medina, who partners Balerdi in central defense for Olympique de Marseille, is another option but appears to be further down the pecking order. His last call-up to the national team dates back to June of last year in the qualifiers, when he started at left back in the 1-1 draw against Colombia. Since then, he has not been called up again, and a sprain kept him out of the October FIFA window.

At the French club, which he joined in mid-2025 on loan after an excellent spell at Lens, Medina played 22 matches as a result of his ankle injury, but now fully recovered he has established himself as a starter. The advantage he has, and the reason he has been a recurring option for Scaloni in the past, is that he can play both as a center back and as a fullback. For the Albiceleste, he has played seven matches compared to the three Senesi has. The last center back called up for the World Cup will come from one of them.

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