Venezuela boss aims to spoil Messi’s Argentina farewell | OneFootball

The coach of the Venezuelan national team, Argentine Fernando Batista, said he will try to “spoil” the celebration that Argentina is preparing for the World Cup Qualifiers match on Thursday in Buenos Aires, which could be Lionel Messi’s last game playing for the ‘Albiceleste’ at home.

“I’m coming to spoil (the celebration) in a positive way. We are playing for qualification,” Batista told ESPN on Tuesday.

Argentina and Venezuela will face each other on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. (Brasília time) at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, in the last double round of the South American Qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, in what will likely be Messi’s farewell playing alongside the world champions in his home country.

For this reason, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) announced that there will be musical performances before the match, and an emotional tribute to the idol is expected from the 85,000 people who will fill the stadium.

The Albiceleste are already qualified for the 2026 World Cup, but Venezuela, currently in the playoffs, is seeking qualification in this double round, which ends at home against Colombia on Tuesday in Maturín. “I told the boys: we didn’t come for a party. We came to play for something important,” said Batista.

In this sense, the ‘Vinotinto’ coach emphasized that determination will be key: “Against this kind of team, you can’t waste the chances you get. You may not have 10 opportunities, but you might have three or four, and that’s when you have to be precise,” he highlighted.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.