Argentina will rest Lionel Messi and several regular starters against Jordania on Saturday, with Lionel Scaloni saying the 39-year-old will go to the bench in the final Group J match. The move comes after Argentina already locked up first place with six points and secured its place in the round of 16.
Scaloni did not close the door on Messi playing a few minutes at the Cowboys stadium in Dallas, but the plan is to protect the team’s legs for the knockout stage. Argentina is also chasing a third straight group-stage win, something it last managed at Brasil 2014, and a rotated side is expected to feature Emiliano Martínez, Marcos Senesi, Nicolás Tagliafico, Leandro Paredes, Exequiel Palacios, Giovani Lo Celso, Giuliano Simeone, Nicolás Paz and Julián Álvarez.
Messi’s place on the bench is the clearest sign yet that Argentina sees Saturday as a chance to manage risk rather than chase drama. The captain has 18 World Cup goals and leads the all-time scoring table, but with advancement already secured, the priority is to reach dieciseisavos with the greatest possible rest.
That calm does not fully match Jordania’s mood. Jamal Sellami has described the meeting as historic and said his side wants to be prepared, learn and enjoy the occasion, even if the team is already eliminated. Argentina, by contrast, is treating the match as a controlled step between the group stage and the knockout round, where the real pressure begins.
What happens next is straightforward. Argentina will face Jordania on Saturday, and the shape of the round-of-16 path will only become clear after Friday’s Group H results. For Messi, the bigger question is not whether Argentina advances — it already has — but how much, if at all, he is asked to play before the tournament tightens.
