Argentina announce preliminary squad for March international break; Lionel Messi included

La Albiceleste will face Uruguay and Brazil in the qualifiers.

Lionel Messi and Claudio Echeverri are both on the provisional Argentina national team roster for the World Cup qualifying matches against Uruguay and Brazil.

For an estimated £12.5 million ($15.7 million) plus add-ons, City acquired Echeverri from River Plate in January 2024. He then returned to the Argentine powerhouses on loan for the remainder of the season. At the Etihad Stadium, he was given the No. 30 shirt after finally joining his new team ahead of the final stretch of this season.

Claudio Echeverri, the new Manchester City player, is on the roster along with other young under 21-year-olds, like Santiago Castro, Nicolas Paz, and Benjamin Dominguez, who will hope to remain in the squad when Lionel Scaloni name the final roster for the games.

Paulo Dybala has also been called up after not getting selected in the last international matches, while the rest of the squad has the usual familiar faces.

After 12 matches, Argentina lead the qualifying standings with 25 points, followed by Uruguay in second place with 20 points. On March 21, they will travel to Uruguay, and four days later, they will host Brazil.

Argentina’s provisional squad for March’s World Cup qualifier games

Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa) – Geronimo Rulli (Marseille) – Walter Benitez (PSV Eindhoven).

Defenders: Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid) – Gonzalo Montiel (River Plate) – Cristian Romero (Tottenham) – German Pezzella (River Plate) – Leonardo Paredes (Marseille) – Juan Foyth (Villarreal) – Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica) – Facundo Medina (Lens) – Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon) – Francisco Ortega (Olympiacos).

Midfielders: Leandro Paredes (Roma) – Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea) – Rodrigo De Paul (Atletico Madrid) – Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen) – Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool) – Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis) – Maximo Perrone (Como) – Giuliano Simeone (Atletico Madrid) – Benjamin Dominguez (Bologna) – Thiago Almada (Lyon).

Forwards: Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United) – Nicolas Gonzalez (Juventus) – Lionel Messi (Inter Miami) – Nicolas Paz (Como) – Claudio Echeverri (Manchester City) – Paulo Dybala (Roma) – Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid) – Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan) – Santiago Castro (Bologna) – Angel Correa (Atletico Madrid).

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