Argentina gave Lionel Messi and the key players a rest after the 120-minute match against Switzerland in the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup on the morning of July 12.
After the 3-1 victory over Switzerland in 120 minutes to win a ticket to the semifinals of the 2026 World Cup, the Argentina team entered a physical recovery phase ahead of the confrontation with England taking place on July 16. In the first training session at their headquarters in Kansas City, coach Lionel Scaloni decided not to let Lionel Messi and the starting players take the pitch.
Only the group of substitute players and those who came on from the substitute bench participated in training on the pitch. The goal of the coaching staff is to help the key players have more time to rest after having to go through a match that consumed a lot of physical energy against Switzerland.
Scaloni previously also affirmed that the national team’s biggest priority at this time is recovery. He emphasized that Argentina only has three days to prepare for the semifinal match, so physical regeneration is more important than any tactical lesson plan.
A notable point in the training session was that Nicolas Gonzalez is still being closely monitored by the medical team. This winger suffered pain in his left ankle after an opponent’s tackle in the match against Switzerland. Initially, Gonzalez only performed stretching movements before participating in light exercises with his teammates.
Argentina also received positive signals from the situation of Cristian Romero and Leandro Paredes. Both left the pitch in extra time due to signs of overload and collisions, but initial examination results showed that they did not suffer serious injuries. Romero was replaced by Nicolas Otamendi, while Paredes made way for Jose Lopez when nearly exhausted.
According to the plan, the Argentina national team will continue to camp in Kansas City until the end of July 14. After the morning training session that day, the whole team will move to Atlanta to complete the final preparation stage.
