This is the Argentina team ‘s last friendly match before the Copa America . After the match, Messi and his teammates moved to Atlanta City to prepare for the opening match and opening match against the Canadian team at 7:00 a.m. on June 21 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Messi played a full match for Argentina for the first time in more than 6 months and scored a double
AFA
According to the Argentine press, Coach Scaloni will also announce the official list of 26 Albiceleste players competing at Copa America after arriving in Atlanta on June 16.
This change is because coach Scaloni is considering the position of young midfielder Valentin Carboni (19 years old), the player who was chosen to play officially in the match against Guatemala and left many impressive marks. statue.
In the last match before the Copa America, the Argentine team fielded its strongest squad with Messi and Lautaro Martinez on the front line. Carboni was tested in midfield with Lo Celso, Enzo Fernandez and Mac Allister. Meanwhile, the defense is the pair of midfielders Lisandro Martinez and Otamendi, along with two familiar full-backs Nicolas Gonzalez and Nahuel Molina. Famous player Di Maria, midfielder De Paul, Paredes and Julian Alvarez entered the field in the second half. Only key midfielder Cristian Romero was allowed to rest.
Striker Lautaro Martinez also contributed 2 goals for the Argentina team
AFA
The Guatemala team surprised everyone by opening the score in the 4th minute after a free kιck and midfielder Lisandro Martinez scored an own goal.
However, Messi and his teammates then took control of the game and scored consecutive goals. In particular, Messi easily equalized 1-1 in the 12th minute when the Guatemala defender passed the ball to his feet right in front of the empty goal. Next, striker Lautaro Martinez scored two more goals in the 39th and 66th minutes to help the Argentine team regain the score 3-1. In the 77th minute, Messi scored the second goal in the match after a beautiful arrangement to seal a 4-1 victory for the home team.
Unlike Coach Scaloni’s pre-match announcement, Messi was expected to play only about 1 half, but this 36-year-old player played the entire match. This is also the first match after more than 6 months, Messi returned and played perfectly for the Argentina team for 90 minutes and scored a double goal.
This perfect run helped Messi and the Argentina team complete the preparation process for Copa America in the sweetest way, with a winning record and a guaranteed team, with no injuries occurring in just under a week. before the opening match of the tournament.