Lionel Messi continues to be arguably the most fascinating soccer player on Earth, but he’s not getting any younger. Argentina are aware that Leo is in the final stages of his career, and that he may not even take part in the 2026 World Cup.
Even if La Albiceleste qualify for the tournament in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, nothing guarantees that Messi will be there. In fact, the Inter Miami star said many times that Qatar 2022 may have been his last World Cup.
However, there could be another option for Messi to have his last dance with the national team in great fashion. Javier Mascherano, who is currently in charge of the U23 Argentine national team, said he’d love to see Messi playing in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Will 2024 Olympics be Messi’s last dance with Argentina?
“In the event that we qualify for the Olympics, we would be proud to have [Lionel] Messi and [Angel] Di Maria,” Mascherano told TyC Sports. “They have earned the right to choose, the possibility is there because we can take three seniors with us.“
Messi and Di Maria led Argentina to their second gold medal in soccer in Beijing 2008. Mascherano even said he would let Argentina national team manager Lionel Scaloni to coach the Olympics team if he wants to.
“I have spoken with [Lionel] Scaloni at the time that, if we qualify, if he wants to be the coach of the Olympic team, I’d have no problem.”
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Can Messi play both in Copa America and the Olympics in 2024?
As interesting as it sounds, we have to keep in mind that the Paris 2024 Olympic Games start 12 days after the 2024 Copa America final. If Messi takes part in the continental tournament, he would have no time to rest for the following event.
