Argentina became the sixth team to confirm their place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup during the March international break and will have the opportunity to defend their crown in North America.
La Albiceleste have waltzed to the top of CONMEBOL’s qualifying table and now have little but pride to play for during their final four matches. Given they had already booked their ticket to the World Cup prior to their 4–1 thrashing of Brazil last time out, motivation doesn’t appear to be an issue for Lionel Scaloni’s men.
Argentina’s impressive demolition of their fierce rivals back in March was all the more eye-catching given they tasted victory without talisman Lionel Messi, who missed out on the squad due to a muscle injury. The 37-year-old’s teammates certainly rose to the occasion.
But will Messi feature for Argentina during the June international break?
When Do Argentina Play in June?
Argentina must go through the motions during their final World Cup qualifiers, with two matches during the current international break. They begin away at Chile on Thursday, 5 June and continue at home to Colombia on Tuesday, 10 June.
Chile should pose little threat given they sit bottom of the standings with just ten points from 14 matches. They were beaten 3–0 by Argentina in the reverse fixture last September and haven’t beaten the world champions since a penalty shootout victory in the 2016 Copa América final.
Colombia will prove a sterner test. They may only be sixth in the rankings but they are desperate for victory to edge them closer to World Cup qualification and have some excellent individuals at their disposal. Colombia won the battle with Argentina back in September 2–1.
Will Lionel Messi Feature?
Having missed out on the March internationals through injury, Argentina have welcomed Messi back to the squad for the upcoming duels with Chile and Colombia. The Inter Miami star—who has produced eight goal contributions in his last three Major League Soccer matches—should return to the starting lineup for both games.
Messi last played for Argentina in November but will have the opportunity to earn two more appearances this month. He’s managed an astonishing 182 caps with La Albiceleste to date and is closing in on a double-century in blue and white.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner will be eager to add to his 112 goals, too. He’s comfortably the country’s top goalscorer and, rather remarkably, he has over double the amount of strikes as second-placed Gabriel Batistuta (55).
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Will Lionel Messi Play for Argentina vs. Chile?.