Among the rising stars is 17-year-old striker Claudio Echeverri, who recently signed with Manchester City following his standout performances at the South American Under-20 Championships. Other young players under 21, including Nicolás Paz, Benjamín Domínguez, and Santiago Castro, have also earned spots in the squad, which was announced on Sunday.
Argentina currently tops the qualifying standings with 25 points from 12 matches. Their first test will be against Uruguay, who sit second with 20 points, at Montevideo’s iconic Centenario Stadium on March 21. Four days later, the reigning World Cup champions will face arch-rivals Brazil at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires.
Squad Breakdown:
Goalkeepers:
Emiliano Martínez (Aston Villa), Gerónimo Rulli (Olympique Marseille), Walter Benítez (PSV Eindhoven).
Defenders:
Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Gonzalo Montiel (River Plate), Cristian Romero (Tottenham), Germán Pezzella (River Plate), Leonardo Balerdi (Olympique Marseille), Juan Foyth (Villarreal), Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica), Facundo Medina (Lens), Nicolás Tagliafico (Olympique Lyon), Francisco Ortega (Olympiakos).
Midfielders:
Leandro Paredes (Roma), Enzo Fernández (Chelsea), Rodrigo de Paul (Atletico Madrid), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis), Máximo Perrone (Como), Giuliano Simeone (Atletico Madrid), Benjamín Domínguez (Bologna), Thiago Almada (Olympique Lyon).
Forwards:
Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United), Nicolás González (Juventus), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Nicolás Paz (Como), Claudio Echeverri (Manchester City), Paulo Dybala (Roma), Julián Álvarez (Manchester City), Lautaro Martínez (Inter Milan), Santiago Castro (Bologna), Ángel Correa (Atletico Madrid).