Why reliance on Messi will only take Argentina so far at Qatar 2022

Argentina headed to Qatar as one of the favourites to lift the World Cup. And rightly so.  

Lionel Scaloni’s men were on a 36-match unbeaten streak, just one shy of the world record, and had won the Copa America in 2021 for the first time in close to 30 years. Spearheaded by an in-form Lionel Messi, the PSG attacker had racked up 11 goals and 14 assists in just 18 outings prior to domestic campaigns coming to a halt. The legendary No. 10 had already revealed prior to a ball being kicked that this would be his last hurrah on the grandest stage of them all, announcing that he wouldn’t be involved in a sixth World Cup tournament in 2026.  

It felt like the perfect storm for La Albiceleste.  

This was a squad that knew how to win and a team that had balance. In previous years, it felt like Messi and 10 others. That was partly because he was the best player in the world, so every manager wanted to ensure they built around him, but it was also because Argentina just didn’t have the quality they needed elsewhere.  

So they had to focus on Messi.  

Scaloni, however, was dealt a much more favourable hand. He had a stacked squad at his disposal and he was able to take a bunch of individuals and turn them into a team. They gave off the appearance of a club team as opposed to an international one.  

Instead of building a system around Messi, Scaloni found a system that Messi could fit into. Instead of having to be the main man, he could be the exclamation point. The 35-year-old would still be instrumental to any of the team’s success, but there was no longer an overreliance on him. Whereas in previous years, Argentina had one standalone frontman, this group felt like an ensemble cast.  

That was the plan and that is what should’ve happened.  

And then they went and lost to Saudi Arabia in one of the biggest shocks in World Cup history.

Despite taking an early 1-0 lead, with Messi converting a penalty after just 10 minutes, Argentina failed to build on this advantage as they had three goals ruled out for offside, and two goals in a frantic five-minute spell just after the break turned the game on its head. Scaloni’s men had 70% of the ball, but couldn’t find a way to convert that possessional dominance into anything more. The former West Ham United full-back made changes, but Saudi Arabia held firm.  

Certain players performed as though they were feeling the pressure of being favourites. Maybe the manager was feeling it too, after all, he was the one who picked that XI.  

The plan, in that second half, went out of the window.  

The game finished with Messi having taken the most shots (4) and having played the most key passes (3). He was the only player for La Albiceleste to return a WhoScored rating in excess of 7.00. Everything we knew about this Argentina side went out of the window, with their No. 10 once again having to carry them.  

Scaloni had one of two choices heading into the Mexico game.  

If he stuck with the same XI after such a disappointing performance, it would’ve been clear that he was following his predecessors in making this team Messi FC and just hoping the Barcelona legend would do something to win them the match.  

If he made changes, he was making a statement. He was telling everyone that this wasn’t a one-man team and that he isn’t a one-trick manager.  

He made five changes, with three of the back four replaced, while Alexis Mac Allister and Guido Rodriguez came in for Papu Gomez and Leandro Paredes in midfield. It might sound like a strange thing to say given Messi scored and assisted in a 2-0 win, but the performance against Mexico seemed more about the team and less about a single player.  

For example, Angel Di Maria played more key passes (2) and completed (5) more dribbles than Messi (1 and 2, respectively). The Juventus winger stepped up while Rodriguez added some much-needed physicality to the midfield and the new full-backs impressed.  

While it wasn’t a statement victory, it was a victory they needed. The most impressive part about it was that it was Scaloni’s version of Argentina, the one that facilitates Messi instead of burdening him with being their everything.  

If Argentina are able to keep Messi as their cherry on top, they will go far in this competition. If he has to start carrying them in matches again, they will be in trouble and an early exit will be on the cards.