Lionel Scaloni, coach of the Argentina national football team, confirmed on Thursday that the friendly match against Benin on October 6 in Buenos Aires will give captain Lionel Messi an opportunity to “farewell the fans in the way he wants.”
The coach of the North American World Cup runner-up this summer said: “It will be difficult not to cry that day, and it is a privilege to be there.”
Messi, who won the Ballon d'Or eight times, announced in late August his retirement from international football at the age of 39, but Scaloni summoned him to play his farewell match.
The Argentine coach explained that he wanted to contribute to holding a final match for the great star in front of his country’s fans, adding: “I contributed my part because I want to be present at his farewell party, and since I do not know today whether I will stay here in the future, we did everything we could so that he could participate in this match.”
Scaloni also believed that the Inter Miami striker, who scored his 100th goal with the American club in early September, deserves to compete for the Ballon d'Or again on October 26.
He said in this regard: “If it is about rewarding the best player...”
The Argentine national team is preparing in Essa, south of Buenos Aires, to play three friendly matches, against Bolivia next Wednesday in Cordoba, then Burkina Faso at the Monumental Stadium on October 3, before facing Benin three days later.
Scaloni did not reveal anything new about his future as head of the national team’s technical staff, given that his contract expires on December 31.
He said: “As far as I am concerned, there is nothing new,” explaining that he had not yet spoken with the President of the Argentine Federation, Claudio Tapia.
German Nico Hulkenberg will continue to drive the Audi team in the 2027 season of the Formula One World Championship, the season in which he will turn forty.
Team manager Mattia Binotto confirmed, on the sidelines of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, on Thursday, that there is also continued reliance on the young Brazilian driver, Gabriel Bortoletto.
Binotto explained that the drivers' contracts extend until 2027, saying: "We knew that there would be no change, and that is why we did not announce next year's lineup, because there is no need for that."
Hulkenberg began his career in Formula One in 2010, and joined the team that became known as “Audi”, and was previously known as “Sauber”, in 2025, the same year in which Bortoletto, who is 22 years old, joined.
Audi is competing in its first season in the constructors’ championship after the company fully acquired the Sauber team.
Hulkenberg had climbed to the podium for the first time in his career during his 239th race, after finishing third in the British Grand Prix last year.
Binotto praised the German driver's performance, stressing that he has great consistency in his level and rarely makes mistakes.
He said: “He always extracts the maximum possible performance from the car, and scores points whenever the opportunity presents itself. He has performed well so far.”
Audi occupies eighth place among 11 teams in the constructors’ championship standings this season with 17 points, of which Bortoletto collected 10 points, compared to 7 points for Hülkenberg.
Deco, the sporting director of Barcelona, the Spanish Football League champion, on Thursday closed the door to renewed attempts to contract with Argentine Julián Alvarez, after the club's efforts to include him failed during the summer transfer period, at a time when the team found an unexpected solution by converting Rafinha to the centre-forward position.
Barcelona searched for an outright striker following the departure of Polish Robert Lewandowski for free to the American League, and placed Lautaro Martinez, captain of Inter Milan, and Alvarez, striker of Atletico Madrid, among his most prominent options.
Deco said, during the Portugal Football Summit: “The idea was always to sign a striker who was good at moving and linking up with the rest of his teammates, and Julián was one of those players.”
He added: “It was not possible.” We made an offer, but his club always repeated that it would not sell him, so we had to look for other solutions.”
Regarding the possibility of renewing the attempt during the winter transfer period, Deco said: “Julian is a thing of the past, and we must look to the future. We are happy with what we have, and I wish him success and continue to help his club.”
Joan Laporta, Barcelona's president, had spoken publicly about the club's interest in Alvarez during the transfer period, which angered Miguel Angel Gil Marin, CEO of Atletico Madrid, who accused the Catalan club of dishonesty, stressing that the Argentine striker would never be sold to him "never and ever."
Barcelona eventually signed Brazilian Gabriel Jesus to be one of coach Hansi Flick's options, but the most prominent solution came from within the team, after captain Rafinha moved from his role between the attacking midfield and right wing to the centre-forward position.
The Brazilian international excelled remarkably in his new position, scoring 14 goals in eight matches, including 12 goals in seven Spanish League matches, topping the scorers list ahead of Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe.
Deco said: “We are happy because we have discovered a new face for Rafinha, but more importantly, he is happy too.” He added: “It is different for him, because sometimes he does not touch the ball constantly as he used to before. He must be ready to attack the spaces behind the defenders.”
He continued: “We expected him to perform at good levels, but not at this superior level.”
Deco revealed that Lautaro was also one of the options Barcelona considered, but the club turned away from him as soon as Inter Milan confirmed its unwillingness to part with its captain.
He said: “At some point, Lautaro was among the strikers we were following. The moment his club told us he was not available, we did not even try or discuss the matter further.”
