The Argentina Copa America 2024 squad isn't far away from being finalised, as Lionel Scaloni targets three consecutive tournament wins with the nation.
Under Scaloni's leadership, Argentina managed to put a disappointing World Cup 2018 behind them and thrive in a new era. After a third place finish in the 2019 edition of Copa America, Argentina came back two years later to win the tournament - Lionel Messi's first in the senior team.
Then, the big one. After defeating Italy 3-0 at Wembley in the 2022 Finalissima, Argentina defied all odds to become world champions, beating France on penalties in the final of World Cup 2022 after an enthralling 3-3 draw over 120 minutes of football.
The Argentina squad has changed somewhat since that triumph in December 2022, but make no mistake: Lionel Messi and Co. will head to the United States hungrier than ever to make it three consecutive tournament wins.
Plus, there's the added narrative of the Inter Miami star dominating a tournament where he plays his club football, in what could prove to be his last Copa America for his country.
Drawn into a group containing Chile, Canada and Peru, it certainly won't be easy for La Albiceleste - not that that's stopped them before.
Argentina's squad
Argentina Copa America 2024 squad: The latest team for March's friendlies
GK: Franco Armani (River Plate)
GK: Walter Benítez (PSV Eindhoven)
GK: Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa)
DF: Nehuén Pérez (Udinese)
DF: Nicolás Tagliafico (Lyon)
DF: Nahuel Molina (Atlético Madrid)
DF: Germán Pezzella (Real Betis)
DF: Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur)
DF: Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica)
DF: Nicolás Valentini (Boca Juniors)
DF: Valentín Barco (Brighton & Hove Albion)
MF: Leandro Paredes (Roma)
MF: Rodrigo De Paul (Atlético Madrid)
MF: Enzo Fernández (Chelsea)
MF: Facundo Buonanotte (Brighton & Hove Albion)
MF: Giovani Lo Celso (Tottenham Hotspur)
MF: Guido Rodríguez (Real Betis)
MF: Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool)
MF: Valentín Carboni (Monza)
FW: Julián Álvarez (Manchester City)
FW: Ángel Di María (Benfica)
FW: Nicolás González (Fiorentina)
FW: Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United)
FW: Lautaro Martínez (Inter Milan)
The squad was announced on March 5 ahead of friendlies against El Salvador and Costa Rica. Both Lionel Messi and Paulo Dybala withdrew from the team due to injury.
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Argentina fixtures and results
September 7: Argentina 1–0 Ecuador,Más Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina September 12: Bolivia 0–3 Argentina, Estadio Hernando Siles, La Paz, Bolivia
October 12, Argentina 1–0 Paraguay, Más Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina October 17, Peru 0–2 Argentina, Estadio Nacional, Lima, Peru
November 16, Argentina 0–2 Uruguay, La Bombonera, Buenos Aires, Argentina November 21, Brazil 0–1 Argentina, Maracana, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
March 22, Argentina 3–0 El Salvador,Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, USA March 26, Argentina 3–1 Costa Rica, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, USA
Argentina Copa America 2024 squad numbers
Squad numbers are yet to be confirmed for Copa America 2024.
Argentina manager: Lionel Scaloni
Scaloni will want to retain the Copa America (Image credit: Getty Images)
Hired in 2018 to much furore - including from Diego Maradona - Scaloni has proved his doubters wrong by winning a Copa America and World Cup in just three tournament attempts. Though this is the 45-year-old's first senior managerial role, he has created a real unity within his side that will make them difficult to beat at Copa America 2024.
Argentina's star player
Lionel Messi
Messi could lead his nation to a third tournament win (Image credit: Getty Images)
Well, obviously. After finally landing his first trophy with Argentina in 2021, Messi finally got the hoodoo of a World Cup of his back in 2022 by dragging his team to win the whole thing in Qatar.
Though he'll still have a point to prove, with the tournament being hosted in the country where he plays his club football, Messi will likely be a lot more relaxed for Copa America - allowing him to play his best football and devastate the opposition.
FAQs
How many players are Argentina allowed to take to Copa America 2024?
Following a couple of tournaments where teams were allowed to select 26 players in their squads, Copa America 2024 will revert to 23-man squads.
Brought in as a special measure due to the Covid-19 pandemic, those larger squads have now been scrapped by CONMEBOL and CONCACAF for this summer's tournament.
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Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.
