According to Liverpool Echo, Mac Allister is being tipped to inherit Argentina's No. 10 jersey after Messi's retirement from international football.

Mac Allister will likely receive a new number for the national team. The Liverpool midfielder has consistently worn the No. 10 jersey throughout his career in England, at both Brighton and Liverpool.

He also wore No. 10 at Argentinos Juniors, with the only exception being his loan spell at Boca Juniors, where he wore No. 8 throughout that season.

He also wore No. 10 for Argentina at the Tokyo Olympics. However, he has never worn that jersey for Argentina's senior team.

In any case, Messi has always been the biggest obstacle for Mac Allister to claim Argentina's No. 10, but Mac Allister doesn't mind.

When Messi was injured in September 2024, Mac Allister explicitly stated that the No. 10 jersey should not be given to anyone else during the captain's absence.

Mac Allister said at the time, "Keeping it (Messi's No. 10)? No! The No. 10 belongs to Messi, it's only his."

However, for Argentina, leaving the No. 10 vacant in official matches violates FIFA regulations. During World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Colombia, Dybala "borrowed" the jersey; later, when Messi was absent from World Cup qualifiers, Ángel Correa and Mastantuono also wore No. 10.

In international friendlies without Messi, the jersey remained vacant.

Messi's international career ended in a farewell match in Buenos Aires. Argentina defeated Benin 3-0, with Messi scoring one goal and providing two assists. After this, Argentina needs to appoint a long-term successor for the No. 10 jersey.

Argentina hopes to retire the jersey. In 2002, Argentina similarly wanted to honor Diego Maradona, but FIFA regulations prohibited it.

Since the relevant regulations still prohibit such tributes, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni previously stated that the team has not yet decided on the new No. 10, and the decision will only be made during November's international break.

Scaloni said, "We are not required to assign this number in this match, so we won't give it to anyone before Leo's farewell match. Our idea is that eventually someone will take it, because wearing it carries significant meaning. We just haven't decided who yet."

There has been a persistent call in Argentina for Mac Allister to become Messi's successor, although Mac Allister's father, Carlos, once suggested rotating the number.

Following Messi's departure from the national team, TyC Sports reporter Ernesto Provitillo again insisted that Mac Allister should be Argentina's next No. 10.

Provitillo wrote after Argentina's victory over Benin: "As we have previously shown, certain players on the national team aided Messi, and there is no doubt that this is a mutually beneficial relationship: Mac Allister's career certainly benefited from his closeness to Messi and the chemistry they built on the pitch."

He also wrote: "It could even be said—and this is just my personal opinion—that the No. 10 jersey should be given to the Liverpool player, who played a key role in the second goal against France in that unforgettable World Cup final."

Provitillo expressed similar views after Argentina's victory over Bolivia last month: "He is the heart of the team, always in the right position, always being the link, always ready to create opportunities. A modern midfielder, constantly moving up and down, bringing the ball forward and back, involved in attacks and creating chances."

"I think it would suit him very well to wear the No. 10 in the near future, as he does at Liverpool."

For the Argentine national team, Mac Allister wears No. 20; in England, No. 10 has almost become his trademark. Although this number carries enormous significance in Argentina because of Maradona and Messi, Mac Allister originally obtained it almost by accident.

In January 2020, Mac Allister returned to Brighton after his loan spell at Boca Juniors was cut short. At the time, Florin Andone was temporarily unavailable, and the No. 10 jersey was vacant.

Mac Allister told The Athletic in 2022: "The No. 10 is important in Argentina and in world football, so it feels great to wear it. I don't look at my number during matches, so it doesn't bother me."

The situation was similar in the summer of 2023 when he moved from Brighton to Liverpool for £35 million. Liverpool's No. 10 jersey had been vacant throughout the previous season after Sadio Mané left for Bayern Munich.

After joining Liverpool, Mac Allister told LFC TV: "I know how important the No. 10 is in football. I also had the option to choose No. 8, which is also an important number for this club, of course because of Gerrard."

"But I decided to choose No. 10 because I frequently wore it in Argentina, at Brighton, and with the national team's U23 squad. It's a number I really like, so I chose it."

Mac Allister later spoke about the significance of the number in an interview with Latin American sports channel Dsports Radio: "Wearing Liverpool's No. 10 means a lot. It represents great responsibility, both on and off the pitch."

"The No. 10 certainly carries responsibility, but I can handle it calmly. You don't constantly stare at your number during a match, but overall, I want to enjoy playing, and I really am enjoying it."

After Florian Wirtz joined, it was claimed that Mac Allister would lose the No. 10 at Liverpool. German media reported that Wirtz had requested the jersey.

Wirtz later denied the claim on social media, and the two subsequently joked about the reports.

Wirtz wrote on social media at the time: "Who said I want this No. 10? I respect the players. Don't believe everything you read."

In August 2025, Wirtz and Mac Allister also shot a Google Pixel 10 phone commercial together, addressing the rumors humorously.

In the ad, Mac Allister walks toward Wirtz at the AXA Training Centre while holding a Google Pixel 10 and says, "I know there have been some rumors out there that Flo wants the No. 10, but I want to tell everyone the truth. Flo! This is the No. 10 you want, right? Google Pixel 10."

Wirtz takes the phone and responds, "Thanks, Macca. That's brilliant!" The two then take a selfie together.

Bayern has hinted more than once that Liverpool's promise to Wirtz regarding the No. 10 jersey may have been one of the reasons Liverpool successfully recruited him.

Liverpool's No. 10 jersey may well be vacant again in the future. Mac Allister's contract with Liverpool expires in 2028, and he has openly stated that the club's delay in offering him a new contract has made him feel "sad."

However, on the pitch, Mac Allister has responded. He has rediscovered his best form under new coach Arne Slot and has returned to the team's starting lineup.

Whether he is good enough to earn a new contract remains to be seen; likewise, only time will tell whether he will take over Messi's No. 10 jersey for Argentina.

But regardless of the number he wears, Mac Allister's importance to both club and country is clear.

As he said while at Brighton in 2022: "It feels great to wear it, but I don't look at my number during matches, so it doesn't bother me."

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