Sports desk: Lionel Messi will play in the qualifying phase of the World Cup. Argentina won the World Cup under his leadership in 2022. This time he will play in the qualifying round of the 2026 World Cup. He can be seen playing against Venezuela.

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Messi was injured while playing in the Copa America final in July. Since then he could not play for the country. 37-year-old Messi is returning to the team after recovering from injury. Argentina's next matches are against Venezuela and Bolivia. Messi can play in those two matches. Earlier, he did not play in the qualifiers against Chile and Colombia.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said, ' Messi is now healthy . Played for Inter Miami last few weeks. Messi asked for time to recover. That is why he was not called into the team to play the previous matches. Messi is training with the team. He is getting ready to play in Argentina jersey. Messi will play against Venezuela.

Even if Messi returns, Argentina may not get midfielder Alexis McAllister. "Mac is practicing," Scaloni said of him. Whether he will play in the first match is yet to be said. He has not joined the team yet.' McAllister was injured while playing for Liverpool in the Premier League against Crystal Palace. Argentina will play against Venezuela on Thursday night.