As a product of the Velez Sarsfield youth academy, he made the move to Benfica in 2024, where he shared the dressing room with Angel Di María and Nicolas Otamendi.

While Scaloni largely stuck to his tried-and-tested world champion core, he injected fresh energy by calling up three new faces: goalkeeper Facundo Cambeses, defender Lautaro Rivero, and midfielder  Anibal Moreno.

Among the top guns, Portugal moved up to fifth, pushing Brazil down a spot, while Italy re-entered the top ten.

With Lionel Messi absent and Lionel Scaloni fielding an alternative lineup, the world champions struggled for rhythm in a tense contest that saw two red cards and a decisive VAR intervention.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner will sit out Argentina’s final group match against Ecuador next week.

Messi scored on either side of the interval, sparking emotional celebrations in front of a packed home crowd that included his family.

At 38, the Argentina captain has already delivered everything: two Copa America titles, a World Cup in Qatar, and an enduring legacy that even his coach admits is “unrepeatable.”

The 38-year-old forward admitted earlier this week that Thursday’s clash against Venezuela “is going to be a very, very special match” as it could mark his last Qualifier on home soil.

The 24-year-old from Fuerte Apache, long tagged as a “gamble” in Argentina’s setup, has finally shed that label and cemented his place as a genuine national team player.

Once playing a young Lionel Messi in a documentary, the 19-year-old prodigy now finds himself training with the real thing, under the same skies and wearing the same colors that Messi has made legendary.

Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the beautiful game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with football metaphors in his homeland.

Gatti -- whose nickname was 'El Loco,' or the mad man -- held the record for most number of games played in Argentina's top football division, with 765. He played from 1962 to 1988.

Maradona died on November 25, 2020, aged 60, while recovering at home from brain surgery for a blood clot. He had battled cocaine and alcohol addiction for decades.

Martinez joins Argentina's growing list of absentees, including captain Lionel Messi, sidelined with a muscle strain, along with Gonzalo Montiel, Giovani Lo Celso, and Paulo Dybala.

Messi and his Argentinian team-mates put an end to their trophy drought by winning the Copa America in 2021 – and haven't stopped winning since.

World Cup champions Argentina are top of the standings with 22 points from 11 matches.

Deportivo Riestra selected a streamer known as "Spreen" for their match against Primera Division leaders Velez Sarsfield on Monday, before substituting the 24-year-old off after 78 seconds. He had  not touched the ball.

Aston Villa's Martinez will return to international duty after serving a two-match ban from FIFA for "offensive behavior and violation of the principles of fair play".

Maradona died in November 2020, aged 60, while recovering from brain surgery for a blood clot, and after decades of battling addictions to cocaine and alcohol.

The top ten positions remain unchanged, with Argentina leading the pack, followed by France, Spain, England, Brazil, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Colombia, and Italy.