Published on 5/29/2026
Argentina is a strong candidate to defend its title in the 2026 World Cup, but its chances may suffer a blow if coach Lionel Scaloni relies excessively on the players who were crowned champions four years ago in Qatar, according to what former star Daniel Bertone warned in an interview with Agence France-Presse.
Will Scaloni pay the price for his reliance on the old lineup?
The Argentine national team will have its inspiring star, Lionel Messi, along with 16 other players from the 2022 squad, on the list of finals scheduled for the United States, Canada and Mexico.
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Bertone said, “I think that Argentina is a candidate (to win the title), given our record of reaching the final 6 times and winning 3 times,” warning, “But if we think that we will become champions again because of our name and what we have achieved previously, then this is a mistake.”
He added, “The thing that might actually kill Argentina is coach Scaloni’s excessive reliance on the players who brought the title four years ago.”
Bertone, who scored a goal in Argentina’s 3-1 victory over the Netherlands in the 1978 World Cup final in Buenos Aires, was part of the 1982 squad that was eliminated in the second round.
Messi leads Argentina despite doubts about his readiness
The former star also expresses his concern in other aspects, including Messi’s situation.
Messi was chosen as captain of the national team again in the hope that he had recovered from a problem in the back muscle that prompted him to ask to leave the field, last Sunday, during his team, Inter Miami, in the American League against Philadelphia.
Bertone said that he “is still a pivotal player” but he is approaching the age of forty (he will turn 39 next June 24), and we must see his physical condition.
He continued, “He is no longer playing at the highest level at the club level, and he will miss Angel Di Maria, who after Messi was a decisive element in the 2022 World Cup.”
Bertone, who played in Europe after the 1978 victory and represented clubs such as Sevilla in Spain and Napoli in Italy, said that holding the title of champion brings great pressure, based on his experience between 1978 and 1982.
He said of the task of defending the title, “It is tremendous pressure. Everything depends on the state of the squad, and the coach’s ability to combine two realities: consolidating the idea that they are world champions, and at the same time emphasizing the necessity of going out and presenting a serious defense of the title.”
He continued, “In the 1982 World Cup, we thought that, since we were world champions, we were able to win again with Diego Maradona and other new players,” adding: “But it is always difficult, as everyone wants to win.”
The 1978 World Cup between glory and political realities
The coronation of Bertone and his companions, including Daniel Passarella, Mario Kempes and Osvaldo Ardiles, was achieved on their own soil under the watchful eye of the military dictator General Jorge Videla, who seized power from Eva Perón in 1976.
At that time, the Military Council’s human rights violations, including torture and forced disappearance of political opponents, cast a shadow over the victory for some.
He said, “At that time, we did not really know what was going on in the country. We knew that there was a military government that was harming the nation, and that a kind of guerrilla war was going on, but we did not know anything about the disappeared, and we learned that later over time.”
He continued, “Players go to the World Cup to play, and to show what they know how to do. We are athletes, and in this capacity we only bear responsibility for what we do on the field.”
