In the museum gallery at the Argentine Football Association (AFA) office, among the team photographs, legends Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi shine as the brightest stars. Around Maradona, Sergio Batista and Marcelo Bochini won the 1986 World Cup — the best team of its time. Millions of Argentine fans worldwide were born watching Maradona. After his departure, having played two straight World Cup finals, the Albiceleste became an ordinary side.
Lionel Messi’s team is called the country’s golden generation. Looking at the team photos from 2021 to 2026 brings a flash of joy to supporters’ eyes; with coach Lionel Scaloni, Messi built this side bit by bit. Yet a note of farewell may soon sound for this golden generation too — because Argentina must now start thinking about the next World Cup.
At 39, Messi plays for Inter Miami of Major League Soccer in the United States. He could easily play two more years for the national team if he wished, but dreaming of a seventh World Cup is asking too much — he would then be 43, an age at which playing a high-voltage tournament like the World Cup is extremely hard. A legend like Messi is unlikely to be that self-centered. And without him, holding the national team together is difficult, as the current side has no second star. So three-time world champions Argentina must search for a new Maradona or a new Messi. Within a year or two, the time of Messi, Nicolás Otamendi and Nicolás Tagliafico from the golden generation may run out, and with the 2030 World Cup in mind, Scaloni must look for new stars.
Though beaten in the final by Spain, the coach told the media: “He is 39 now. In a word, he is unbelievable. I cannot get anything new out of him. I have said this before and I say it again — Messi can keep playing as long as he wants. Every supporter and teammate will stand by him. I am sure everyone is proud of him. What he has achieved makes him, without doubt, the greatest footballer of all time.”
The coach had balanced the current side with experienced and young players, with Messi the heavyweight and the rest more ordinary — influential at club level but never having played without Messi. So, thinking of the future and the centenary World Cup, Argentina may have to consider alternatives. Still, it was with this team that Argentina won the 2022 Qatar World Cup and finished runners-up at the just-concluded North American World Cup — reaching three of the last four finals, runners-up twice, and winning two Copa América titles.
The coach may try to hold this success-laden side together a while longer, since his own success is tied to Messi’s. Scaloni’s squad includes goalkeepers Emiliano Martínez and Juan Musso; defenders Leonardo Balerdi, Gonzalo Montiel, Lisandro Martínez, Cristian Romero, Facundo Medina and Nahuel Molina; midfielders Valentín Barco, Giovani Lo Celso, Exequiel Palacios, Alexis Mac Allister and Enzo Fernández; and forwards Julián Álvarez, Lionel Messi, Nicolás González, Thiago Almada, Giuliano Simeone, Nico Paz, José Manuel López and Lautaro Martínez, who may carry the team forward. But it is natural for a star or two to fade with time — there, goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli and midfielders Rodrigo De Paul and Leandro Paredes could enter that at-risk list.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report