Lionel Messi Will Lead Argentina At 2026 World Cup, Says Riquelme

Veteran football midfielder, Juan Roman Riquelme has backed Lionel Messi to lead Argentina at the 2026 World Cup after “reinventing himself” at Inter Miami.

The Argentina skipper bagged his first major international trophy in 2021 when he guided his team to the Copa America. The following year, Messi helped La Albiceleste to their third World Cup crown in Qatar as the legendary player completed football, admitting that he had achieved all of his goals in the game.

In the summer of 2024, Messi and Co. Successfully defended their Copa America title in the U.S. and are already being billed as one of the favourites for the 2026 World Cup. While there have been doubts over Messi’s participation in the flagship competition for the sixth time in his career, his former Barcelona and Argentina team-mate Riquelme claimed that he has no doubts that the 37-year-old will grace the global stage again.

Riquelme said on the AZZ channel: “Messi is reinventing himself. You never know what he can do. And I have no doubt that he will play in the next World Cup, he has to play. We will all be rooting for him to play. I don’t tease him too much, but we talk a lot. That’s why I think he’s going to play. He’s very good, it’s something that’s not normal. And to that, he adds that he really likes to compete. He’s won a lot and he still wants to keep winning.”

Messi made a triumphant return to the pitch after a long injury layoff on Saturday, as he scored twice in Inter Miami’s 3-1 victory over the Philadelphia Union in Major League Soccer. He will next be seen in action when the Herons take on Atlanta United in another Eastern Conference fixture this week.