Messi Leads Argentina's Copa America Squad; Icardi Omitted

Argentina, which has fallen in the final to Chile in its last two regional championships, sets out to win its first major international trophy since the 1993 Copa America.

Jul 14, 2024; Miami, FL, USA; Argentina forward Lionel Messi (10) looks on against Colombia in the second half during the Copa America Final at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Lionel Messi is back for more with Argentina.

As expected, the Barcelona superstar headlines Argentina's Copa America roster, with La Albiceleste still in search of a first major international trophy since 1993. After consecutive gut-punch losses in finals to Chile in 2015 and 2016, Argentina will hope 2019 is the year the drought ends, while being able to do so on rival Brazil's home soil would make things extra sweet for Lionel Scaloni's side.

The manager, who took over in an interim capacity after a futile World Cup effort, has also called on the likes of Sergio Aguero and Paulo Dybala to lead his attack, though there continues to be no room for Mauro Icardi, the mercurial Inter Milan talent who was omitted for last summer's competition in Russia as well. Icardi's club teammate, Lautaro Martinez, has gotten the call, however.

In the back, there remain significant questions as it pertains to goalkeeper, where the three chosen ones have nine caps combined between them despite having an average age of over 30, and in defense, where the highly susceptible Nicolas Otamendi remains by far the most experienced option.

As much as Argentina would like for it to be different, though, its fate ultimately rests with Messi, who returned to the national team for the first time since the World Cup for a pair of March friendlies. Argentina is grouped with Colombia, Paraguay and guest nation Qatar and is slated to warm up for Copa America with a friendly vs. Nicaragua before opening Group B play on June 15.

Here's Argentina's full squad for the competition:

GOALKEEPERS: Esteban Andrada (Boca Juniors), Franco Armani (River Plate), Agustin Marchesin (Club America)

DEFENDERS: Milton Casco (River Plate), Juan Foyth (Tottenham), Nicolas Otamendi (Manchester City), Ramiro Funes Mori (Villarreal), German Pezzella (Fiorentina), Renzo Saravia (Racing Club), Nicolas Tagliafico (Ajax)

MIDFIELDERS: Marcos Acuna (Sporting CP), Rodrigo De Paul (Udinese), Angel Di Maria (PSG), Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis), Leandro Paredes (PSG), Exequiel Palacios (River Plate), Roberto Pereyra (Watford), Guido Rodriguez (Club America)

FORWARDS: Sergio Aguero (Manchester City), Paulo Dybala (Juventus), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Matias Suarez (River Plate)

This is page has been taken from the Sports Illustrated archive and is based on old news. The dates shown on this page do not represent the news provided.

This article is part of the Sports Illustrated archive. The date on this page does not represent the date when the original article was published (May 21, 2019).

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