Lionel Messi marked his return from an injury scare with a goal as Argentina cruised to a 3-0 victory over Iceland in their final World Cup warm-up match in Auburn, Alabama, on Tuesday.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner started on the bench as Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni carefully managed his recovery after the Inter Miami star was forced off with muscle fatigue during his club’s 6-4 victory over Philadelphia on May 24.
Messi was joined among the substitutes by key players including Julian Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez and Alexis Mac Allister, as Scaloni fielded an experimental starting line-up before a crowd of 88,000.
The 38-year-old, who is preparing to feature in a record-equalling sixth World Cup, quickly eased concerns over his fitness with an influential 20-minute cameo.
Argentina will begin the defence of their World Cup title against Algeria on June 16 before taking on Austria and Jordan in Group J.
Iceland nearly stunned the reigning world champions in the opening minutes when Mikael Egill Ellertsson blazed over the bar with the goal at his mercy.
Argentina capitalised on that let-off by taking the lead shortly afterwards. Following a scramble in the Iceland penalty area, the ball fell kindly to Strasbourg defender Valentin Barco, who drilled a low effort into the bottom corner.
Nico Paz had an opportunity to double Argentina’s advantage before the break but was denied by Iceland goalkeeper Elias Olafsson, who used his face to block the youngster’s powerful strike.
Scaloni introduced Fernandez and Mac Allister among five changes at half-time, while Lautaro Martinez also entered the fray and came close to scoring on two occasions, striking the woodwork twice.
The expectant crowd finally got its wish when Messi was introduced for the final quarter of the match.
The Argentine captain made an immediate impact. With his first meaningful contribution, he produced a defence-splitting pass that released Martinez, who was brought down by Olafsson after attempting to chip the goalkeeper.
Messi stepped up and calmly converted the resulting penalty, scoring his 117th international goal in his 199th appearance for Argentina.
He was also involved in Argentina’s third goal, threading a pass to Rodrigo De Paul, who squared the ball for Thiago Almada to tap home and complete a comfortable victory for the three-time world champions.
AFP
