Scaloni expects to start 'fundamental' Messi as Argentina begin World Cup defence

[p]The 38-year-old ‌captain is set to play a record sixth ‌World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, and ‌both coach and teammates made clear his influence ‌remains undiminished as the reigning champions prepare to face [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/algeria/nc87N1BR/"]Algeria[/a] on Tuesday.[/p][p][b]"Not only Argentines, we believe everyone wants to see ‌him on the pitch, wants to see ⁠him play," Scaloni ‌told reporters on Monday, confirming the forward has recovered from a ​recent muscle strain and is expected to be in the starting lineup.[/b][/p][image alt="Argentina - Algeria win probability" id="35cb912b-fae6-42fe-aa47-260245411046" credit-line="Opta by StatsPerform" guid="f9e769d8-efb2-490e-a798-0f676bd7443b" original-width="1080" original-height="1080" /][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/messi-lionel/vgOOdZbd/"]Messi[/a] was left on ​the bench during [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/argentina/f9OppQjp/"]Argentina[/a]'s 2-0 win over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/honduras/fP8cJrsS/"]Honduras[/a] in a friendly on June 6th, but came in as ⁠a substitute in ​their 3-0 victory against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/iceland/6TsAIrGN/"]Iceland[/a] last week, scoring one of their goals from the penalty spot.[/p][p]Scaloni dismissed any suggestion the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/inter-miami/0AheRyBg/"]Inter Miami[/a] player's presence could be a burden ‌for the South American side, saying that his impact never waned as he played under different physical conditions over the years.[/p][p][b]"He has always been there, and he has always been fundamental for us. And now even more so," the coach said.[/b][/p][image alt="Lionel Scaloni during Argentina training" id="9dc50f52-4e16-44f8-afe2-a5fbc063aac6" credit-line="IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters / Denny Medley" guid="2f7f8e0f-41bc-4c01-9f6d-f389f9c57430" original-width="7286" original-height="4972" /][p]Long-time teammate [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/otamendi-nicolas/KSBVnX8R/"]Otamendi[/a], also approaching what is expected to be his final World Cup, reflected on their shared journey - which included ‌the title at Qatar 2022 - and described Messi as "the ​best player in history".[/p][p][b]"We have lived many beautiful ‌moments together," the 38-year-old said.[/b][/p][p][b]"He is a simple person who enjoys training camps and practices, and prepares himself for that. He is also a competitive animal. That pushes you to keep trying, not to ⁠relax, to try ⁠to be alongside him, ‌to support him and help him."[/b][/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/algeria-nc87N1BR/argentina-f9OppQjp/?mid=UP9bEsOr"]Follow the game with Flashscore.[/a][/p][infobox id="4ccc1b10-d68f-4c97-bcf4-5e613c17c2e3" /]