Argentina will arrive at the 2026 FIFA World Cup as the reigning champions after winning the title at Qatar 2022 by defeating France in the final. That success would have been impossible without Lionel Messi, who shined throughout the tournament, and now one of his teammates from the national team has revealed an anecdote involving the forward.
Leonardo Balerdi gave an interview this week to Get French Football News in which he reflected on the months leading up to the 2022 World Cup. Although he was not included on the final roster, he had a matchup against Messi in Ligue 1, when Leo was still playing for Paris Saint-Germain.
“You try not to think too much about who he is but there was one game before the 2022 World Cup when all my friends messaged me: ‘Do NOT injure Messi,’” the Olympique Marseille defender revealed. “I said: ‘Don’t say that!’ Playing against him was special but he played for PSG and I wanted to beat him.”
This shows the importance Messi had—and still has—for the Argentina national team, to the point where Argentine opponents felt pressure not to risk injuring him before a major tournament.
Argentina defender Leonardo Balerdi.
“As a player, he’s something else. He’s like Diego Maradona. He put Argentina on the map. For our generation, Messi represents football: our football, our people, our neighborhoods,” Balerdi explained. “We’ve been lucky to have Maradona and now Messi. You have to enjoy it while he’s still playing.”
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Balerdi aims to make the 2026 World Cup
Leonardo Balerdi made his official debut for Argentina at just 20 years old, in 2019. However, after playing two matches, he did not return to the national team for another five years. Between 2024 and 2025, his strong performances with Olympique Marseille in Ligue 1 brought him back into Lionel Scaloni’s plans, and since then he has played nine more matches between friendlies and South American qualifiers.
“My objective is to go to the World Cup. It would be a dream to win something with the national team,” he said in the same interview with Get French Football News. However, the defender knows he must handle the situation calmly: “I have to stay in the moment, otherwise my head will explode with everything else happening.”
Balerdi believes his relationship with the Argentine head coach will be an asset as he competes for one of the 26 spots on the final roster. “I’ve known Lionel Scaloni for a long time. I was in the under-20s at a tournament in Spain and since then I’ve always had a good relationship with him. He’s relaxed and doesn’t speak too much, but when he does, he’s precise,” Leonardo said.
Argentina’s defensive options ahead of the 2026 World Cup
After winning the title at Qatar 2022, Argentina continued their dominant run by capturing the Copa America 2024 and topping the South American qualifiers by a wide margin. However, that did not stop coach Scaloni from making several changes to the squad with the 2026 World Cup in mind.
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Young stars such as Franco Mastantuono and Nicolas Paz have gained prominence recently, to the point where they have a real chance of securing one of the 26 spots. The defensive sector has followed the same trend, and Leonardo Balerdi has also increased his chances.
Even so, the 26-year-old defender will face tough competition. Cristian Romero and Nicolas Otamendi remain the primary center backs, and it seems unlikely they will lose that status in the next six months. The first alternative is Lisandro Martinez, though his physical issues create uncertainty. That is where Balerdi might find opportunities, competing with other players such as Juan Foyth, Lautaro Rivero, and Marcos Senesi.
