FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[cxtreenal]

Of course, Messi’s absence will have a major impact on the Argentine national team’s performance in the future. No single player is capable of replacing Messi’s role on the Argentine team. Both the coach and the Argentine people are well aware that Messi will soon retire from soccer. However, at least Argentina still has some great talents on the team. Although their roles are different, with the talented players currently on the roster, the Argentine team won’t be too bad, at the very least.

Messi no doubt is one of world's greatest footballer but Argentina has history of producing great names in football and I am sure they have talent available to fill the gap after Messi retirement. Its probably the last world cup of Messi since he is already 39 but he is fortunate enough to be part of winning world cup squad in 2022. There are many great names in history of football that played great football but were not able to help there country in winning the FIFA world cup title like CR7.

I used to like the Argentina team, especially the artistic football of the team's players, but recently I have seen some young and amateur players, and I have no confidence in them. They will never lead the Argentina team to a good position. Messi is a talented player, you will not see violence in him. He is determined to achieve his goals and succeeds.

I will not name those players in the Argentina team, but those who watched the World Cup final must have seen those players who did not want to admit their failure and showed arrogance and hit the players of the opposing team. You will never see the trophy in the hands of those players because they like violence and attack the opponents.

Messi may retire very soon, but I do not see a talented player to replace him. I think some talented players like Julián Alvarez are needed to take the lead in the Argentina team. I haven't seen many talented players in most of the attacking players on the national team.

[Cgrexp]

The 2026 World Cup will be Messi’s last. Although Messi has not yet decided whether the 2026 World Cup will be his last, given that he is approaching retirement age, it seems unlikely that he will be able to play in the 2030 World Cup. Both Argentina’s coaches and fans surely realize that it will be impossible for Messi to play in the 2030 World Cup. This is certainly something Scaloni has already considered for the future, as Argentina’s style of play will inevitably change completely without Messi.

Without Messi, the Argentina team will be much weaker in the future. Because having Messi in the team means having his passing, dribbling and goal scoring ability. In addition, the incredible assists he makes and his contribution to goal scoring may never be replaced by anyone. The Argentina team has not yet found a replacement for Ángel Di María. Although there are many good players in the Argentina team. But the position of an experienced player like Di María has not yet been filled. And if Messi retires and he is forced to, which is because it is almost impossible to play football at that age. In that case, it will be a big bad news for the Argentina team. Even then, if they can change their planning and strategy and perform well, then it will definitely be good for the Argentina team.

Of course, Messi’s absence will have a major impact on the Argentine national team’s performance in the future. No single player is capable of replacing Messi’s role on the Argentine team. Both the coach and the Argentine people are well aware that Messi will soon retire from soccer. However, at least Argentina still has some great talents on the team. Although their roles are different, with the talented players currently on the roster, the Argentine team won’t be too bad, at the very least.

We all know that Messi's absence in the national team will have a big impact. We have seen that Lionel Scaloni has designed an attacking strategy centered around Messi in every match. The main task of the other players in the team was to deliver the ball to Messi.  and Messi alone was responsible for finishing. But the Argentine national team has never been weak. Most of the players who are still in Argentina can be considered as key players in other leagues. There are more talented players like Julián Álvarez, Lautaro Martinez, Nico Gonzalez who play as key performers in different leagues. So although Messi's absence will be a bit difficult for the team at the beginning, it is expected that with time and Lionel Scaloni's strategy, the team will perform strongly again.

[slapper]

I noticed that some people found the third-place game rather bad. A third-place game could only be enjoyable if played like this – and that’s exactly what happened. You’ll only come across things like man-to-man marking, cautious play and concentration if there’s a major prize at stake. If the chance of winning the title has vanished and the players from both teams have taken to the pitch reeling from the devastation of having let a major prize slip through their fingers, the only thing that will make that match entertaining and good is the players actually enjoying themselves. Otherwise, we’d be watching players strolling about the pitch, too lazy to run, passing the ball back and forth to kill time; we’d see one, at most two goals, or we’d fall asleep whilst trying to watch it.

You are right that there was no pressure on anyone in this match. It was one of the most entertaining matches of this World Cup. England won 6-4. A total of 10 goals were scored by both sides in a match, but that is unbelievable in a game like the World Cup. Firstly, both teams missed out on winning the World Cup. Secondly, it was not a knockout match that would have created any fear that they would be eliminated if they lost, they were able to play completely independently. England's big achievement was that they were able to use the opportunities relatively well. I liked Saka's hat-trick. And the reason why the number of goals was so high is because both teams were attacking teams. I thought France would lose by a larger margin, but they are trying to make a comeback quite well. However, England also score goal at the last moment. If such a match were seen in the final where the number of goals of both teams would be more, it would have been more enjoyable. However, it is not possible to see such a match in the final. Because at that time the players are under a lot of pressure.

France with Deschamps was not a team that attacked. You had Mbappe and they were parked buses for half the tournament. So what changed? Nothing tactical. Deschamps simply lost interest. Prior to the game both sides were saying they did not want to play it, he added. His own words.

And it showed. In the first half, Mbappe said they were "completely stunned". Like mentally gone. It is not a confrontation between two teams that are trying to attack each other. One team was not defending, another team were cashing in.

Obviously Saka is brilliant, that is not an argument. Hat-trick in a knockout game.

Yet, Mbappe received an ideal score in defeat. The man was untouchable. And still lost. His teammates apparently thought the first half was not important.

[Creeper0]

We all know that Messi's absence in the national team will have a big impact. We have seen that Lionel Scaloni has designed an attacking strategy centered around Messi in every match. The main task of the other players in the team was to deliver the ball to Messi.  and Messi alone was responsible for finishing. But the Argentine national team has never been weak. Most of the players who are still in Argentina can be considered as key players in other leagues. There are more talented players like Julián Álvarez, Lautaro Martinez, Nico Gonzalez who play as key performers in different leagues. So although Messi's absence will be a bit difficult for the team at the beginning, it is expected that with time and Lionel Scaloni's strategy, the team will perform strongly again.

Messi's absence will certainly be felt on the big stages. But in the regular matches, Argentina still has a good team. Just as we felt the absence of Ángel Di María in the just-concluded World Cup, we will feel the absence of Lionel Messi in the upcoming World Cup. Moreover, it is not that the Argentina team will fall apart if Messi leaves, the team still has star players and most of them are key players in their respective clubs.

We will only see the absence of Messi and Ángel Di María in big tournaments like the World Cup and this void may not be filled soon. With Messi, every player in the team plays for Messi, but when Messi is not there, everyone plays for the team and the strategy will be different. I am very interested to see what the team achieves after Messi's departure, it will be interesting to see whether they can achieve success or only failure.

[skarais]

~~~

We will only see the absence of Messi and Ángel Di María in big tournaments like the World Cup and this void may not be filled soon. With Messi, every player in the team plays for Messi, but when Messi is not there, everyone plays for the team and the strategy will be different. I am very interested to see what the team achieves after Messi's departure, it will be interesting to see whether they can achieve success or only failure.

Honestly, Argentina's game strategy is not entirely built for Messi, but instead Messi plays for the team and he is a much-needed player. Messi not only has goalscoring skills, but he is also quite capable of building attacks and providing assists for his teammates. In fact, your conclusions are contrary to what actually happens on the pitch, I mean all players play for the team and not for Messi.

Some people think that Argentina's success is due to Messi's talent alone and without him Argentina is nothing. I had thought that way before, but regeneration is always going to be there even if it's never the same again. Remember what many people said when Barcelona lost Messi, but the fact is that Barcelona can still win titles with its new generation.

[ChocolateBitcoinK]

The 2026 World Cup will be Messi’s last. Although Messi has not yet decided whether the 2026 World Cup will be his last, given that he is approaching retirement age, it seems unlikely that he will be able to play in the 2030 World Cup. Both Argentina’s coaches and fans surely realize that it will be impossible for Messi to play in the 2030 World Cup. This is certainly something Scaloni has already considered for the future, as Argentina’s style of play will inevitably change completely without Messi.

Without Messi, the Argentina team will be much weaker in the future. Because having Messi in the team means having his passing, dribbling and goal scoring ability. In addition, the incredible assists he makes and his contribution to goal scoring may never be replaced by anyone. The Argentina team has not yet found a replacement for Ángel Di María. Although there are many good players in the Argentina team. But the position of an experienced player like Di María has not yet been filled. And if Messi retires and he is forced to, which is because it is almost impossible to play football at that age. In that case, it will be a big bad news for the Argentina team. Even then, if they can change their planning and strategy and perform well, then it will definitely be good for the Argentina team.

Of course, Messi’s absence will have a major impact on the Argentine national team’s performance in the future. No single player is capable of replacing Messi’s role on the Argentine team. Both the coach and the Argentine people are well aware that Messi will soon retire from soccer. However, at least Argentina still has some great talents on the team. Although their roles are different, with the talented players currently on the roster, the Argentine team won’t be too bad, at the very least.

Messi's role is the most important behind Argentina reaching the final in this World Cup. It is definitely very difficult for Argentina to fill the void of a player like Messi. Argentina scored a total of 19 goals in this World Cup, of which 8 were Messi's. Although Lautaro Martinez, Julián Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez have proven themselves to be very good players, so it is not a matter of the team being very unbalanced in Messi's absence. but, it must be accepted that a big void will now be created among them, which is also a difficult matter to fill.
Messi from Argentina.
Neymar from Brazil.
Cristiano Ronaldo from Portugal.
This was the last dance of these legends. I will miss them forever in the World Cup.

[Abdulzuruku01]

Messi's role is the most important behind Argentina reaching the final in this World Cup. It is definitely very difficult for Argentina to fill the void of a player like Messi. Argentina scored a total of 19 goals in this World Cup, of which 8 were Messi's. Although Lautaro Martinez, Julián Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez have proven themselves to be very good players, so it is not a matter of the team being very unbalanced in Messi's absence. but, it must be accepted that a big void will now be created among them, which is also a difficult matter to fill.
Messi from Argentina.
Neymar from Brazil.
Cristiano Ronaldo from Portugal.
This was the last dance of these legends. I will miss them forever in the World Cup.

Without Lionel Messi Argentina wouldn't have reached the final. Messi scored total of 8 goals in this tournament and his assists helped his team to pass the difficult stages until they reached the final. Had it been Di Maria still play for them, their performance in the final wouldn't have been that poor because attack was their problem in that match. Honestly If Messi quits playing for Argentina, they will surely suffer for it until they will find someone that can play his role and in my opinion that will be very tough for now.

[JahriMeayer]

The 2026 World Cup will be Messi’s last. Although Messi has not yet decided whether the 2026 World Cup will be his last, given that he is approaching retirement age, it seems unlikely that he will be able to play in the 2030 World Cup. Both Argentina’s coaches and fans surely realize that it will be impossible for Messi to play in the 2030 World Cup. This is certainly something Scaloni has already considered for the future, as Argentina’s style of play will inevitably change completely without Messi.

Lionel Messi is truly the one in a generation player and replacing him is simply impossible. Argentina will definitely miss his creativity, his leadership and the capability which can change any match within a single moment, egypt was the example. However football is changing with time and every team eventually enters a new era. Scaloni has already started planning their team without Messi by giving more responsibility to players like Julian Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez as well as Lautaro Martinez!! Possibily they may not replicate Messi's magic individually but they can make Argentina stronger together. Every legend has to retires and that's the part of football. But if Argentina continues to develop young talent and able to maintains their strong team spirit, they can maintain their status as one of the strongest team in the football world.

[*Ace*]

I'd say that as a strategy it really leaves a lot to be desired. You're Argentina and you're the reigning world champion, your strategy is to go to penalties and try to win it hoping for luck? I don't think that's the strategy they wanted to use, rather I think Spain completely caged them! They were able to play whatever game they wanted! You can see that clearly from the match statistics.

Dear Ace, you are absolutely right! Argentina didn’t need to adopt such a defensive tactic in the hope of taking the match to penalties, or perhaps they wanted to go all out in the final 10 minutes to score a goal and put Spain under pressure, but instead their plans were distroied. Given its history, Argentina must play openly from the start, without fear. This mistake, however, doesn’t change my opinion of Scaloni, whom I consider a great manager, and the "Scaloneta" when it works is a brilliant style of play.

In my opinion, this strategy has many limitations and is highly unreliable against some teams, especially if they have excellent setters. Sooner or later the opposing team, which is practically forced to attack continuously, finds a way to get to the shot and can score.  That's basically what happened in this final! The "Scaloneta" worked but thanks to a lot of luck and refereeing help, considering that Argentina faced only 2 strong teams in the whole tournament, England and Spain. Too little to deserve this trophy

[Ale88]

Messi's role is the most important behind Argentina reaching the final in this World Cup. It is definitely very difficult for Argentina to fill the void of a player like Messi. Argentina scored a total of 19 goals in this World Cup, of which 8 were Messi's. Although Lautaro Martinez, Julián Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez have proven themselves to be very good players, so it is not a matter of the team being very unbalanced in Messi's absence. but, it must be accepted that a big void will now be created among them, which is also a difficult matter to fill.
Messi from Argentina.
Neymar from Brazil.
Cristiano Ronaldo from Portugal.
This was the last dance of these legends. I will miss them forever in the World Cup.

Without Lionel Messi Argentina wouldn't have reached the final. Messi scored total of 8 goals in this tournament and his assists helped his team to pass the difficult stages until they reached the final. Had it been Di Maria still play for them, their performance in the final wouldn't have been that poor because attack was their problem in that match. Honestly If Messi quits playing for Argentina, they will surely suffer for it until they will find someone that can play his role and in my opinion that will be very tough for now.

And the fact that Argentina, despite the easy teams faced in the tournament, wouldn't have made it without the help of a 39-year-old player says a lot about the team and the level of the other players. It's going to be interesting to see if they'll keep calling Messi or not because clearly he won't be playing in the next World Cup, he would be 43, that's insane.

[Saltysugar99]

And the fact that Argentina, despite the easy teams faced in the tournament, wouldn't have made it without the help of a 39-year-old player says a lot about the team and the level of the other players. It's going to be interesting to see if they'll keep calling Messi or not because clearly he won't be playing in the next World Cup, he would be 43, that's insane.

You are right. without Messi's contribution, Argentina would never have reached this stage. And there is no doubt that they had to play with a relatively less powerful team in this World Cup. Even then, they had a lot of difficulty winning all those matches. And I also think that Messi will not be able to play in next World Cup. Because it is very difficult to maintain performance at the age of 43. And physical fitness is very important in football. Many are worried about what will happen to Argentina. They will have to change their strategy of playing Messi dependency games. Only then will they be able to do well in the World Cup.

[WatChe]

You are right. without Messi's contribution, Argentina would never have reached this stage. And there is no doubt that they had to play with a relatively less powerful team in this World Cup. Even then, they had a lot of difficulty winning all those matches. And I also think that Messi will not be able to play in next World Cup. Because it is very difficult to maintain performance at the age of 43. And physical fitness is very important in football. Many are worried about what will happen to Argentina. They will have to change their strategy of playing Messi dependency games. Only then will they be able to do well in the World Cup.

Messi has already played his part well by helping his side in winning 2022 world cup and also finishing as runner up in 2026 world cup. Now its time for new players to take the responsibility because every player has to retire at some time. Teams like Argentina have strong domestic structure of football where talented players are available. It's high time for Argentina to lessen their dependency on Messi and try to play good football without him, that's the only way they can show good performance in upcoming world cup.

[Sammye3]

And the fact that Argentina, despite the easy teams faced in the tournament, wouldn't have made it without the help of a 39-year-old player says a lot about the team and the level of the other players. It's going to be interesting to see if they'll keep calling Messi or not because clearly he won't be playing in the next World Cup, he would be 43, that's insane.

It would be a delight to see what the next World cup would be like for Argentina without Messi, we could see the loopholes in the squad and an evidence that Messi can never be replaced in the squad because they have built their football around him. Argentina are no where close to any of the few big countries they faced in the World Cup in terms of squad depth but the choice of fixtures were always in their favor.

Messi is a great player even at 39, but his time with the countryside is over now. What would Argentina be without him?

[sergiorus]

And the fact that Argentina, despite the easy teams faced in the tournament, wouldn't have made it without the help of a 39-year-old player says a lot about the team and the level of the other players. It's going to be interesting to see if they'll keep calling Messi or not because clearly he won't be playing in the next World Cup, he would be 43, that's insane.

It would be a delight to see what the next World cup would be like for Argentina without Messi, we could see the loopholes in the squad and an evidence that Messi can never be replaced in the squad because they have built their football around him. Argentina are no where close to any of the few big countries they faced in the World Cup in terms of squad depth but the choice of fixtures were always in their favor.

Messi is a great player even at 39, but his time with the countryside is over now. What would Argentina be without him?

Argentina would have won the 2022 WC final match without Messi.
Without Angel Di Maria - they would never.

Who knows, maybe Argentina would be even better off without him. I believe they would have performed better in the last WC with him either. And don't start about them reaching the final match - they didn't deserve it whatsoever.

[Sarah Azhari]

~Snip~

honestly It's funny how some Ronaldo fans always look for a way to criticise Messi.

Ronaldo?s fans hate Messi because Messi has already won the World Cup. That?s why they look for ways to keep criticizing Messi, even if it?s in a silly and unreasonable way. i sometimes laugh at the behavior of Ronaldo?s fans on social media who bash Messi. Sometimes i find myself thinking, ?What?s wrong with Ronaldo?s fans?? It seems so ridiculous, and it seems like many of them don?t even understand soccer. they?re just blindly fanatical.

They always make comparisons between Ronaldo and Messi, and they will continue to do so! And they criticize each other, but that doesn't change the fact that they are two of the best players in the world. Now they criticize Messi just because he lost this World Cup, but one player alone doesn't make a team. And he has at least won one World Cup, so there's little to criticize; he's achieved his goals.

The back-and-forth jabs between them have been going on for a long time, and they continue to this day. However, Ronaldo’s fans are the most aggressive. They can’t accept that Messi has won the World Cup, while Ronaldo has not. So it’s no surprise that Ronaldo’s fans blindly berate Messi on social media. For neutral observers, Ronaldo and Messi shouldn’t be pitted against each other because both are among the greatest players of all time. It will likely be difficult to find players like Ronaldo and Messi again in the future.

[Stavri]

You are right. without Messi's contribution, Argentina would never have reached this stage. And there is no doubt that they had to play with a relatively less powerful team in this World Cup. Even then, they had a lot of difficulty winning all those matches. And I also think that Messi will not be able to play in next World Cup. Because it is very difficult to maintain performance at the age of 43. And physical fitness is very important in football. Many are worried about what will happen to Argentina. They will have to change their strategy of playing Messi dependency games. Only then will they be able to do well in the World Cup.

Messi has already played his part well by helping his side in winning 2022 world cup and also finishing as runner up in 2026 world cup. Now its time for new players to take the responsibility because every player has to retire at some time. Teams like Argentina have strong domestic structure of football where talented players are available. It's high time for Argentina to lessen their dependency on Messi and try to play good football without him, that's the only way they can show good performance in upcoming world cup.

i don't believe any other player in history could dominate a world cup like this at 39 years old. even Maradona couldn't do it at 30 nor Zidane at 34... even Pele didn't play in a world cup after 30.

imo what he has accomplished after the age of 35 alone makes him one of the greatest footballers in history.

[Unsoldier]

Of course, Messi’s absence will have a major impact on the Argentine national team’s performance in the future. No single player is capable of replacing Messi’s role on the Argentine team. Both the coach and the Argentine people are well aware that Messi will soon retire from soccer. However, at least Argentina still has some great talents on the team. Although their roles are different, with the talented players currently on the roster, the Argentine team won’t be too bad, at the very least.

Messi no doubt is one of world's greatest footballer but Argentina has history of producing great names in football and I am sure they have talent available to fill the gap after Messi retirement. Its probably the last world cup of Messi since he is already 39 but he is fortunate enough to be part of winning world cup squad in 2022. There are many great names in history of football that played great football but were not able to help there country in winning the FIFA world cup title like CR7.

I used to like the Argentina team, especially the artistic football of the team's players, but recently I have seen some young and amateur players, and I have no confidence in them. They will never lead the Argentina team to a good position. Messi is a talented player, you will not see violence in him. He is determined to achieve his goals and succeeds.

I will not name those players in the Argentina team, but those who watched the World Cup final must have seen those players who did not want to admit their failure and showed arrogance and hit the players of the opposing team. You will never see the trophy in the hands of those players because they like violence and attack the opponents.

Messi may retire very soon, but I do not see a talented player to replace him. I think some talented players like Julián Alvarez are needed to take the lead in the Argentina team. I haven't seen many talented players in most of the attacking players on the national team.

What nonsense you've written. What makes you think the Argentina players love violence and are arrogant? Argentina plays a physical game—that's their style—but that doesn't mean the players love violence or are arrogant. There was a bit more rough play from them in the final, but it's a final, and everyone plays at their limit. As for Enzo Fernandez getting a second yellow, he deeply regrets it himself and certainly didn't mean to commit that foul. Reports even say he sank into a depression over his red card in the final.

[martinom]

What nonsense you've written. What makes you think the Argentina players love violence and are arrogant? Argentina plays a physical game?that's their style?but that doesn't mean the players love violence or are arrogant. There was a bit more rough play from them in the final, but it's a final, and everyone plays at their limit. As for Enzo Fernandez getting a second yellow, he deeply regrets it himself and certainly didn't mean to commit that foul. Reports even say he sank into a depression over his red card in the final.

the Argentine players don't like violence but they have been, they are very aggressive and have always beaten their opponents, and they have clearly demonstrated that they don't know how to lose a football match, there is certainly a lot of competitive spirit and they want to win at all costs but this is not the case, you don't play like that.

[pewboy]

The back-and-forth jabs between them have been going on for a long time, and they continue to this day. However, Ronaldo?s fans are the most aggressive. They can?t accept that Messi has won the World Cup, while Ronaldo has not. So it?s no surprise that Ronaldo?s fans blindly berate Messi on social media. For neutral observers, Ronaldo and Messi shouldn?t be pitted against each other because both are among the greatest players of all time. It will likely be difficult to find players like Ronaldo and Messi again in the future.

Yes, i trust in many other things that Ronaldo could do but now his age is starting to take its toll and this will no longer allow him to play at a high level, age in the end is a very disabling thing and the more time passes the more he realizes that he is no longer what he once was, he needs to change his approach, at least he has to reach 1000 goals.

[Volgastallion]

Messi can never be replaced because is Messi, but i feel like Argentina can fix the team and can find the way to play at high level as always, but the first years could be hard if they dont find a formation which suit and setled fast, but i have good hope on them since Nico Paz seems to be a young new star and they have some other young players who wants to write his own history.