Otamendi’s Argentina exit leaves Benfica on edge | OneFootball

In a match that marked the official farewells of Lionel Messi and Nicolás Otamendi from the official Argentina squad, Benfica knows that the captain will still have a hectic life when it comes to national teams and is trying, together with the number 30, to reach a middle ground.

According to what the Record newspaper has found out, despite not participating in the tournament that will take place next year, the veteran Argentine wants to still participate in the preparation matches of the World Champion, which, during the next FIFA breaks, will go through three continents, America, Africa and Asia, in a real world tour.

However, the same source states that Benfica has already been informed of the decision made by the central defender, however, it is not 100% in favor of it. The sports daily explains that the Club da Luz is trying to convince Otamendi to only play the first match of the October break, in order to have some rest time before returning to competition for the encarnados.

From what was found out, Benfica's 'ban' will only affect the month of October, as the Club da Luz, before and after the national team break, has three high-demand games and wants to count on the Argentine at full strength. Before the national team games, the eagles have a match scheduled with Chelsea and Porto. Afterwards, Bruno Lage's team will have a duel against Newcastle.

This season, only with the Benfica jersey, Nicolás Otamendi - valued at 1 million euros - has played eight matches: four in the Champions League, three in the Liga Portugal Betcic and one in the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira. In the 720 minutes he was on the pitch, the Argentine international performed at a high level.

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