According to Olé, Argentina's national team is actively preparing for their first friendly match after the World Cup final. Argentina will face Bolivia at Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes in Córdoba. The team is training, and head coach Scaloni will hold a press conference, while the starting lineup for the match will also be confirmed before the team travels to Córdoba.

Argentina's first match after the World Cup final; Scaloni begins rebuilding

73 days after losing to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final, Argentina's national team will return to action. At 8:00 AM Beijing time (CEST) on September 30, Argentina will face Bolivia at Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes in Córdoba.

Messi will miss this match, while Scaloni will continue leading the team despite uncertainty about his coaching future. After a weekend break, the Argentine national team resumed training at the Ezeiza training center on Monday afternoon local time. On Tuesday, Scaloni will attend the pre-match press conference, and after training, the team will travel to Córdoba for final preparations for this friendly.

This also marks the beginning of Scaloni's task to rebuild the Argentine national team that made history. Messi and Otamendi are no longer in the squad, and it remains to be seen whether Paredes, who faces a 10-match ban, can participate. Additionally, Scaloni has not called up De Paul and Lo Celso this time.

During Thursday's training session last week, Scaloni conducted the first starting XI session since the World Cup. Martínez starts in goal, with a defensive line of Jai, Romero, Lisandro Martínez, and Facundo Medina; Palacios partners with Mac Allister in midfield, with Mastantuono and Nico Paz orchestrating the attack, alongside Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez up front.

Notably, Enzo Fernández is absent from this starting XI, as he received a red card in the recent World Cup match.

Scaloni on contract extension: willing to continue, but hasn't met Tapia yet

Ahead of Argentina's first match after the World Cup final, head coach Scaloni spoke about his contract extension. He stated that he has not yet met with Argentine Football Association president Tapia and has no new updates on their future discussions.

Scaloni said: "The week after the final was very special and wonderful. I had time to relax a bit and get over the disappointment of not winning the title, but overall, I feel calm about all the results. Regarding my personal situation, there's no new news. I had planned to meet with the president yesterday, but it didn't happen because I had a dentist appointment, and today he's in Paraguay. We'll be in touch, and when there's news to share, we'll let everyone know. Nothing has changed."

Regarding squad updates, Scaloni stated that personnel changes after the World Cup are a natural choice: "The call-up list is a signal—something any coach would do. After the World Cup, this is a good time to make some personnel changes. We currently have many young players in the squad, and what we're doing is similar to 2018, when we didn't know if we'd continue coaching or not. We work for the national team, not for personal gain. Everything takes time, and we hope these young players can stay."

On the World Cup final loss, Scaloni was candid: "Not winning the title is a big blow; we were just one step away from winning the World Cup again. But the position I hold now is a dream, and that won't change."

He also stated that he still needs to discuss matters with Tapia: "Next, I need to sit down and talk with the president, but that hasn't happened yet. Therefore, other statements appearing outside are not accurate; everything remains as before, and our current work is to create playing opportunities for these young players."

Finally, Scaloni directly stated that he still wants to continue coaching: "I really want to stay here, but there are many aspects that need to be discussed, and I have to sit down and talk with the president. After such a special World Cup, people always reconsider some things, and we'll see what happens next."

Scaloni also spoke about Messi's return to the national team and expressed his desire to witness a proper farewell for the captain.

He said: "I think a player like Messi deserves a proper farewell ceremony. I'm just doing my part because I hope to attend his farewell, and I don't know if I'll still be here in the future, so we made this comeback together, and he also made an effort for it."

"If a tribute is organized for him, now is the most fitting time for him to feel the love of everyone. I spoke with him and hoped to convince him to return, because nobody knows what will happen in the future, and he understood that. The Argentine Football Association also made an effort; it's a beautiful thing, and he deserves all of it."

Regarding various "conspiracy theories" circulating, Scaloni responded: "That's nonsense..."

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