With 10 days to the World Cup, these are the injured stars worrying Argentina

While Argentina’s men’s national football team for the 2026 World Cup was confirmed by head coach Lionel Scaloni on Thursday, it remains to be seen whether the 26 men the coach named will be there when the ball starts to roll at the stadiums across North America. Several Albiceleste players enter the final stretch of preparations with fitness concerns after enduring a long and demanding club season. The biggest name with a question mark is clearly that of Lionel Messi. The Argentine captain, who arrived at the training camp in Kansas City on Sunday, is struggling with a strain in the back of his left leg. After being substituted due to injury in Inter Miami’s last match before the World Cup, he is expected to sit out Argentina’s preparatory friendlies against Honduras on June 6 and Iceland on June 9 as a precaution. Another of the big Argentina stars in trouble is goalkeeper Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez. The two-time Yashin Trophy winner fractured a finger on his left hand during the warm-up for the Europa League final. The injury was only a minor fracture, and Martínez played on to become one of his team’s standout performers in the match. Even so, he is expected to miss Argentina’s first two warm-up friendlies in order to ensure he is fully fit for the team’s World Cup opener. Other concerns One who might miss Argentina’s World Cup opener against Algeria is Cristian “Cuti” Romero. The center defender is recovering from a lateral ligament strain in his right knee he suffered back in April while playing for Tottenham in the English Premier League. Recovery times generally run from a month to six weeks, so Romero is in a race against the clock to make it, but should be available for the rest of the tournament. Right-backs Gonzalo Montiel and Nahuel Molina are facing similar concerns. Montiel suffered a tear in his left quadriceps while playing for River Plate and will be closely monitored as Argentina’s training camp progresses. Of the two, he appears the more likely to miss out on the final squad if he fails to recover in time. It’s a similar situation for Molina, who suffered a tear in his right hamstring while playing for Atlético Madrid in early May. However, his situation is far less complicated, and he should be available. Others returning to fitness are midfielder Leandro Paredes (right hamstring spasms), midfielder Nicolás Paz (left knee spasms), striker Julián Álvarez (rolled left ankle), and Thiago Almada (muscle strain).  None of the injuries is considered serious, and all four are expected to be available for Argentina’s World Cup opener. What happens if a player can’t compete in the World Cup due to injury? While Scaloni’s 26-player list is final, it’s not definitive for now.  The head coach can make changes to the squad if an injury occurs (or is deemed more serious than previously thought) until June 15, one day before the team makes its tournament debut. The replacement must be selected from the provisional list of 55 names that the federation previously submitted to FIFA. This happened in the buildup to Qatar 2022, when strikers Joaquín Correa and Nicolás González were dropped in favor of Ángel Correa and Thiago Almada, who were fitter.