A man who cannot control traffic. Diego Maradona had a brutal assessment of Lionel Scaloni when he was appointed as Argentina’s full-time manager in 2018. Argentina had many glittering names to choose from: Marcelo Bielsa, new-age revolutionary Mauricio Pochettino, Simon Diego the angel of the arts.
Yet, to rebound from the disaster that followed the Moscow World Cup, they turned to a largely unknown and unknown man. His club journey was scattered between mid-table clubs in Italy and Spain. He wore the national stripes only seven times. He briefly managed Sevilla and Argentina’s U-20 side before joining Jorge Sampaoli’s backroom staff during his disastrous career. The Federation chose him, allegedly, because he came cheap and wasn’t arrogant; His upbringing was simple in a farming family in Pujato, Santa Fe.
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He was in the hotel gym with the Under-20 squad when the phone rang. Shocked, but ready. The conversation ended with the first brief: for the Copa America they had not won in 26 years. But even before he drew up the list, he knew his main goal. Disillusioned with the national team, Messi is again sidelined. He had not yet retired, but his commitment to the national side was waning.
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Later that night, at the dinner table, Scaloni and his assistant Pablo Aymar, the silver-footed forward, messaged Messi. The content was simple: “Hi, LionIt’s Scaloni. Pablo and I want to talk to you.” Messi was in Barcelona’s pre-season conditioning camp then. In the morning, Messi video-called them, and after the conversation ended, Messi swore allegiance to Project Scaloneta.
Messi time-travelled to his debut against Hungary in 2005, when he received a red card 45 seconds into the game. “I was in tears, but I remember Leo (Scaloni) and Juan (Pablo Sorin) protesting, pleading with the referee. After the game I was still crying but Leo would comfort me. I found the eyes of a brother,” he told Canal TV.
Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni hugs Lionel Messi after their World Cup round of 16 football match against Egypt in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
Messi would say after the Qatar win: “Subconsciously, you feel you owe him something, because he brought me in. I won’t let him down.” The feeling is perhaps the foundation of Argentina’s golden run in the Scaloni era: two Copa titles, a World Cup and a possible defence.
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The manager’s biggest challenge was not tactics or assembling a strong side. There was no dearth of talented footballers. But knit together a group that fought and worked, that gelled and mixed. After Qatar’s World Cup victory, he explained: “Strategy is second, first you need the right men.” By the right men, he didn’t mean people suited to his structure, but men qualified to carry Messi’s burden rather than increase it.
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The 2022 team was not the best in the tournament; 2026’s side isn’t the brightest either. Messi and best friend Rodrigo de Paul arrive for Inter Miami; One was relegated from the Brazilian league. All four regulars in the English Premier League were coming back from terrible seasons. Seven of the team were over 30. Argentina failed in the tournament; There were moments when they might have been. But every time Scaloni’s men looked to be drifting towards the exit, they mounted a spirited comeback. Down two goals against Egypt until the 79th minute, 2-2 in extra time against Cape Verde, Argentina found a way back. Not through radical maneuvers or jaw-shaking moves. But by force of will.
That spirit, in short, is Scaloneta. The zeal to not bow or surrender, the courage to fight till the last drop of blood. “Football is not just tactics and strategy,” he said after Egypt’s comeback. “Those things are important, no doubt, but if we didn’t have the heart, we would have been out,” he added.
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Scaloni achieves this without extensive tactical discussions in the boardroom or theatrical cues on the touchline. He maintains a firm grip on his emotions until he faces a dramatic attack against Egypt. shouted Scalloni; Like Messi and his men.
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Scaloni isn’t just a vibes manager. He used a different formation in almost every match in 2022, starting in a 4-3-3 with Angel Di Maria wide left to create a front three that reduced France’s habit of playing from the back. This stymied them, creating space for Argentina’s midfielders to overload France’s own. With Antoine Griezmann locked down, France’s attacking threat faded for the first hour.
His ideas are flexible, depending on his employees. Argentina’s supply of wingers has dried up, so he didn’t try to create one, but rather narrowed the midfield with his possession style. At times against Egypt, Alexis McAllister was the focal point of attack, while centre-forward Julian Alvarez dropped back. Cristian Romero, pushed forward from his usual midfield berth, scored the first goal of Argentina’s comeback.
The nucleus of the team is Messi; It always was. But only Scalloni could find the ecosystem in which Messi could fully flourish.
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Messi and the World Cup were once an unrequited love story. Messi gave his heart and soul; The trophy glared at its suitor. Scaloni’s predecessor Sampaoli once said: “Messi has a revolver in his head called the World Cup and if he doesn’t win, he’s shot dead. As a result, he can’t enjoy his talent.”
Seeing him through Messi’s own eyes rather than a manager’s strategy sheet, Scaloni shackled Messi from Sampaoli’s rigid structures and let Messi be himself. Knowing that his athleticism had faded, he covered him with hard runners, a generation that had grown up idolizing Messi and were willing to sacrifice for him to conquer the world.
From Messi-dependencia, it moved to enable Messi to perform at his peak. No wonder it matched Messi’s highest goal-scoring stretch in 2022 and 2026, with 15 goals and four assists. He happily plays without a revolver on his head. And Scaloni, who Maradona taunted couldn’t even handle the traffic, is managing the best era in Argentina’s football history.