“I imagine that Messi will play tomorrow (June 10). I don’t know if it will be 45 minutes or 60 minutes, but everyone will be able to see Messi on the field. We also have to calculate how many minutes Messi will play in the two preparation matches, to be ready for the opening match at Copa America ,” coach Scaloni said, in a press conference on June 9 before the Argentina team began the preparation process for Copa America after more than a week of training in Miami (USA).
Messi with coach Scaloni (left) and President of the Argentine Football Federation, Mr. Claudio Tapia (right)
AFA
To prepare for the journey to defend the Copa America championship, the Argentine team arrived in Miami City from June 3 and practiced at the training center of Inter Miami Club, where famous player Messi is playing.
Argentina will play two friendly matches against Ecuador and then Guatemala at 7am on June 15 in Landover, Maryland (USA). After these matches, they will return to Miami to continue training in preparation for the opening day of the Copa America.
The fact that the Argentine team chose Miami City as their base throughout the Copa America campaign made Messi very comfortable. He revealed: “During the past week, we didn’t feel too stressed before a big tournament like before. I was still able to go home to have dinner with my family, play with my children, rest and have breakfast.” The next day, they went to a training site very close to home. The same goes for the other players. They brought their whole families to America, they could rent a house or stay at a friend’s house here, and after training sessions they could return to their families or friends. Do other things without worrying too much.”
“However, before the matches, we will have to stay focused. Starting this weekend, the players will only stay at the hotel, move and live according to the team’s rules. This is not too much. difficult, because we are used to living like that from Copa America 2021 or at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar,” Messi shared in a recent interview with journalist Pollo Alvarez of Infobae .
Messi was very comfortable during the preparation process for Copa America
AFA
Meanwhile, coach Scaloni once again confirmed that he only guaranteed Messi’s official position and position in the Argentina team for the Copa America. “I have not yet confirmed 100% of the squad for the Copa America, except for Messi’s position or possibly Di Maria, who are also the captain and vice-captain of the team respectively. I need to evaluate further, especially because I have to evaluate the positions that can be substituted to make changes. Based on that, we will evaluate the entire squad and make a decision to choose the appropriate personnel,” coach Scaloni emphasized.
The Argentina team currently has 29 players called up for the Copa America. Coach Scaloni will have to drop 3 players after 2 friendly matches with Ecuador and Guatemala to keep 26 official players before 1 week of the opening day of the tournament.
In the Copa America group stage, the Argentina team (located in Group A) plays the opening match and opens the tournament against the Canadian team at 7:00 a.m. on June 21 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. Next is the match against Chile at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey at 8:00 a.m. on June 26 and the match against Peru at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida at 7:00 a.m. on June 30.
