Paris Olympics... Will Messi participate with Argentina?

ArabiaWeather - Javier Mascherano, the current coach of the Argentine national team who qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics, opened the door for Lionel Messi, the Argentine star, to join the team as one of three players over the age of 23.

Argentina qualified for the Paris Olympics after defeating Brazil 1-0 in a match in Caracas, a victory that earned it one of the South American continent's tickets to participate in the Summer Games.

It is noteworthy that this qualification prevented the team that won the gold medal in the Rio 2016 Olympics and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics from participating in the Paris Olympics, and Argentina won the gold medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics under the leadership of coach Marcelo Bielsa and striker Carlos Tevez, and in the 2008 Beijing Olympics with the participation of Lionel Messi in particular.

In his comment, Mascherano, who played with Messi in the Argentine national team and Barcelona, confirmed:

“Everyone knows my relationship with Leo, and the door is open for him to join us.”

'Door is open' for Messi to play at Olympics – Mascherano https://t.co/dS5dQFzd28

- Football Reporting  (@FootballReportg) February 12, 2024

Strengthening Olympic teams

According to the laws, Olympic teams are allowed to strengthen their ranks with three players over the age of 23, which may enhance their chances of competing. Javier Mascherano, the coach of the Argentine national team that qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics, has sparked interest in star Lionel Messi, indicating the possibility of him joining as one of those. players.

Mascherano also previously spoke about the possibility of handing over management of the Olympic team to Lionel Scaloni, the coach of the first team that won the World Cup in Qatar 2022.

In the same context, Paraguay succeeded in qualifying for the Paris Olympics after defeating Venezuela 2-0, topping the group with 7 points, ahead of Argentina by two points, and ahead of Brazil by 4 points, while Venezuela bottomed the standings with only one point.

The teams of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Venezuela reached the final stage of the South American Olympic qualifiers, where they competed in a group that included 4 teams.

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Sources:

aljazeera