Almada and Foyth out of Argentina squad for Messi farewell

Thiago Almada and Juan Foyth have dropped out of Argentina's squad for the three friendlies that end with Lionel Messi's farewell against Benin, the AFA has announced.

Almada, a 24-year-old River Plate midfielder, went off early in his club's last league match with a muscle injury. Initial assessments point to several weeks out. Foyth, 28, has not played for Villarreal for more than three weeks and has had muscle discomfort since late August. By Mundo Deportivo's account, he was in the final stretch of his recovery but did not make it in time.

Argentina play Bolivia on September 30 at Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes in Córdoba. They then return to the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires for Burkina Faso on October 3 and Benin on October 6, the date set for Messi's last appearance in the shirt. Messi announced his retirement from the national team on September 4, after 21 years and 125 goals.

World Soccer Talk reports that Lionel Scaloni does not need to call up replacements. He had already added six players from the Argentine league and three from abroad to the original list, taking it to 37 names. Almada was one of the six local additions, alongside Nicolás Otamendi, Santiago Beltran, Tobías Andrada, Leonel Flores and Tomás Palacios.

Foyth's absence is another in a run. He missed the 2018 World Cup and the 2021 and 2024 Copa América, and was in the squad only at Qatar 2022, which Argentina won.

Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni is not on the injury list. He arrived with a left ankle complaint and began by training apart from the group. After a medical reassessment he stays with Scaloni's squad, Record reports. The Argentina medical staff described the problem as a knock, with no serious injury, and he should be an option for all three games.

Prestianni also posted two training photographs on social media. One shows a mark on his face from the challenge by Porto's Alberto in the clássico at the Dragão, where he claimed a touch to the face. Referee Miguel Nogueira took no action and booked Prestianni for protesting. A third Portuguese headline, however, says Prestianni trained separately and may have to stop, so his availability is not yet settled.

If the squad stays at 37, Scaloni goes into Messi's farewell with a deep pool but few obvious minutes for those who were added late. Should Prestianni's ankle flare up again, that pool would be tested sooner than planned.