Three Argentine clubs Lionel Messi kept a close eye on this year 👀 | OneFootball

As Lionel Messi prepares to play his last World Cup qualifier with the Argentine national team in the country, this very Thursday at 20:30 against Venezuela, a player from the domestic scene who visited him not long ago in Miami revealed details of the captain's fanaticism for Argentine football.

Iván Tapia, one of the captains of Barracas Central and son of the president of AFA, was in charge of reviewing a chat with the best footballer in history in which he accounted for three Argentine teams he has been following this year.

"He told me: 'Come and greet me'. He was sitting on the bench, asked me to stay and we talked for a while. That moment was impressive and speaks to how great he is. We talked about everything. I didn't know he watched our football and I was surprised because he talked to me about the River vs. Platense match, at the Monumental when River was eliminated", the Guapo player told ESPN about La Pulga's reference to the quarterfinal duel of the past Apertura 2025 that ended up being won by El Calamar.

Without Tapia mentioning any reference to Boca, the other giant of Argentine football, or to Newell’s, where Messi trained from a very early age and where they still dream that he will come to play professionally, he did surprise with his opinions on much more humble clubs, like Deportivo Riestra.

"He is aware of everything that happens. He told me: 'Look at Platense, they have to push because anyone can get there. Look at how Riestra complicates the matches'. It caught my attention a lot because the guy could be doing something else and he watches our football. That speaks to how enormous he is", the Barracas midfielder said.

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