Photo: Collected
Lionel Messi ended his international career with Argentina eight days ago. Next month the Albiceleste will set out on a new mission without him, and it has now emerged who Lionel Scaloni’s side may face.
A report on Thursday by the Argentine outlet TyC Sports said Argentina and Uruguay may meet in a new edition of the Rio de la Plata derby. The match is expected to be held at La Bombonera, the home of Boca Juniors. Although the date and venue have not yet been fixed, the match may take place during the FIFA international break in November.
Under the plans of the Argentine Football Association (AFA), the side may play one more match at home; in that case the national team of Costa Rica is on the list of possible opponents. The next FIFA international break will run from 9 to 17 November. The matches next month are being seen as the start of Argentina’s post-Messi era.
Argentina won all three of their matches by big margins in the last FIFA window. Scaloni’s side beat Bolivia 4-0 at the Mario Alberto Kempes Stadium in Cordoba, and then beat Burkina Faso 7-0 at River Plate’s ground. Messi did not play in those two matches; his last match in an Argentina shirt was against Benin at the Monumental on 7 October.
The Argentina-Benin match at the Monumental had been all about Messi beforehand, and so it remained to the end. He had a hand in all three goals against Benin — scoring one and assisting two. Ending a long international career of 21 years, Messi broke down in tears while delivering his farewell speech.
He has played a record 208 matches for Argentina and is also the country’s leading scorer with 126 goals. He has assisted 69 goals. Of these, he has scored 21 goals at World Cups, eight of them at the 2026 World Cup in June and July this year.
