Gabriel Omar Batistuta says he now spends part of his life herding cows in Reconquista, far from the pitch that made him one of Argentina’s most famous forwards. At 57, he also says he lives with two pieces of titanium in his ankles, the physical price of a career that ended long ago but still shapes his days.
That is why his latest comments are drawing attention now: Batistuta is no longer speaking as a player chasing goals, but as a former star describing what comes after them. He says he still moves around the football world with FIFA and comments on matches for Telemundo, which keeps him close to the game even as he describes it with a calm distance.
He says that distance is real. Batistuta says he looks at football with serene detachment, and he is even “scandalized” by the old Maradona or Messi question. But his attachment to Argentina has not faded, and the World Cup still pulls him in. He says he is confident but not calm about Argentina’s match against Capo Verde, a reminder that even from a quieter life he is still tracking the tournament closely.
Batistuta’s view comes with the bluntness of someone who has already lived through the sport’s most punishing side. He says the group stage is one thing and knockout games are another, because then a team is playing to go forward or go home. He also says Scaloni is succeeding in keeping the group united, praising the coach for not celebrating too much and not getting angry too much, so the squad follows his ideas.
There is another layer to that trust: Batistuta says Lautaro should play if he is in good form, while Julian Alvarez would also deserve a place because he is a world champion. He does not try to solve the selection for Scaloni. He simply says both are strong, and taking one out would feel unfair either way. That same practical instinct runs through his reading of the tournament itself, which he says is not only about attackers but also about goalkeepers.
Batistuta’s praise for the game is mixed with a refusal to romanticize it. He says he likes the stadium in New York and the pre-match ritual at the Mondiale, especially hearing every player sing the anthem and seeing the giant flags. He says that two years ago he started saying the final would be France-Argentina, and he has not changed his mind. He also says he told Telemundo the same thing, adding that he enjoys working there and that he had already said 9-10 goals would be needed to finish as top scorer.
That confidence sits beside a more complicated memory of the sport. Batistuta says Loco Bielsa remains the most important coach for him and that results alone should never be the only way to judge a manager. He also points to keepers such as Vozinha and Gill as part of what makes the Mondiale worth watching. The picture he draws is of a man who has left the game’s center but never really left its orbit: still tied to Argentina, still measuring matches, and still living with the titanium in his ankles that came from the life he once led.
