Argentina will leave Lionel Messi on the bench for Saturday’s final Group J match against Jordania, and Exequiel Palacios is among the players set to benefit from the rotation. Lionel Scaloni said on Friday that Messi would start as a substitute, though he did not rule out using him for a few minutes at the stadium of the Cowboys de Dallas.
The move comes after Argentina secured qualification and first place in Group J with six points, making the game a chance to protect regular starters before the dieciseisavos del Mundial. Emiliano Martínez is expected to be the only regular starter in the planned lineup, while Marcos Senesi, Nicolás Tagliafico, Leandro Paredes, Palacios, Giovani Lo Celso, Giuliano Simeone, Nicolás Paz and Julián Álvarez are in line for roles, with Paz replacing Messi in the side.
That is the practical reason Messi matters in the search now: readers want to know whether he will play, and if so for how long, after Scaloni made clear the team is treating the match as a rotation exercise. He said the hope was that the team would play in the same way, and that Argentina would try some small changes from the last match while keeping the same intention of controlling the ball and putting pressure on the opponent.
Jordania, meanwhile, arrives already eliminated and with a very different frame of mind. Jamal Sellami said on Friday that he hoped his team would be prepared for what he called a historic match against Argentina, adding that they would try to learn from facing one of the best teams in the world and a favorite to win the title while also enjoying the occasion. His words underlined the gap in stakes: for Argentina, the night is about preservation; for Jordania, it is about making the most of a rare stage.
Argentina still has one competitive target left in the group stage. A third consecutive win would match a run it last managed at Brazil 2014, and the result may help carry momentum into the knockout round, where the opponent will not be known until Friday’s Group H results are in. The only unanswered point worth watching on Saturday is whether Messi stays pinned to the bench or gets a brief run before Argentina turns fully to the next round.
