One of Lionel Messi’s Argentina teammates has been ruled out of the World Cup just days before the tournament kicks off, while a Premier League star could be called up as a replacement.
Argentina enters the 2026 World Cup, to be held in the US, Mexico and Canada, as defending champions, after dramatically winning the 2022 final against France on penalties.
Messi will lead the team in his sixth appearance at the World Cup finals, while Premier League stars such as Enzo Fernandez, Alexis Mac Allister, Lisandro Martinez, Cristian Romero and Emiliano “Emi” Martinez are expected to play key roles in the Latin Americans’ bid to secure a fourth trophy in history.
However, while the aforementioned names will be part of the tournament, Marseille captain and center back Leonardo Balerdi will not play in the World Cup, having been ruled out due to a muscle injury in his right leg.
Balerdi was active in the qualifiers, where he made seven appearances, while in total he has 11 matches with the Argentina jersey.
Now manager Lionel Scaloni must decide on his replacement, with Bournemouth centre-back Marcos Senesi being mentioned as the leading candidate to be included on the list.
Other options mentioned are: Agustin Giay, Nicolas Capaldo, Marcos Senesi, Lucas Martinez Quarta, Kevin Mac Allister, Zaid Romero, German Pezzella, Lautaro Di Lollo, Marcos Acuna and Gabriel Rojas.
It is also reported that Senesi is expected to join Tottenham as a free agent this summer.
