Three years ago, Angel Di Maria's crucial goal in the final against Brazil secured Argentina's first Copa America win since 1993. Then, less than 18 months later, Argentina celebrated their first World Cup triumph since 1986 after a dramatic penalty shootout victory over France.
With their sights set on more silverware, Argentina will prepare for their Copa America defense with two friendlies—against Ecuador on June 9 and Guatemala on June 13. Scaloni's team will kick off their tournament campaign against Canada on June 20, followed by group stage matches against Chile and Peru.
Now, let’s take a closer look at Argentina's 29-man squad, highlighting the key players and noting any significant omissions.
Argentina's Copa America 2024 squad
Goalkeeper: Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa), Franco Armani (River Plate), Geronimo Rulli (Ajax)Defenders: Gonzalo Montiel (Nottingham Forest), Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Leonardo Balerdi (Marseille), Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), German Pezzella (Real Betis), Lucas Martinez Quarta (Fiorentina), Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United), Marcos Acuna (Sevilla), Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon), Valentin Barco (Brighton)
Midfielders: Rodrigo De Paul (Atletico Madrid), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea), Leandro Paredes (Roma), Guido Rodriguez (Real Betis), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Giovani Lo Celso (Tottenham Hotspur), Valentin Carboni (Monza)
Forwards: Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Angel Di Maria (Benfica) Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan), Julian Alvarez (Manchester City), Nicolas Gonzalez (Fiorentina), Angel Correa (Atletico Madrid), Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United)
Notable Omissions
Top on the list is Paulo Dybala who played a minor role in Argentina's World Cup victory, coming on as a late substitute in both the semi-final and final.However, he won't have the chance to contribute to his country in this summer's tournament. Despite having a strong season with Roma, Dybala was left out of Scaloni's traveling squad.
Dybala had a standout season, being nominated for Serie A's Best Attacker award after scoring 13 goals and providing nine assists in 28 league appearances. He contributed more goals than any of his Roma teammates, but it wasn't enough to earn him a spot on the team headed to the United States.
Scaloni also excluded PSV Eindhoven goalkeeper Walter Benitez, Bournemouth defender Marcos Senesi, and Atlanta United attacker Thiago Almada from the squad.
With the roster currently at 29 players, Scaloni still needs to cut three more before finalizing his squad for the tournament.
