According to Argentine media outlet MinutoUno, Messi will play his farewell match for the Argentina national team in a friendly against Benfica. The Argentine Football Association (AFA) had initially hoped to gather all 26 members of the 2022 Qatar World Cup-winning squad to witness Messi's farewell, but it was ultimately confirmed that five players would be unable to attend, with Gomez notably not receiving an invitation.

The match will be held at River Plate's Monumental Stadium, where the AFA and fans will collectively pay tribute to Messi. Although most of the World Cup-winning squad will be present, some players cannot attend due to club commitments or other reasons.

The most notable absentee is Alejandro Garnacho, nicknamed "Papu." The midfielder has not represented the Argentina national team since the 2022 World Cup and has experienced an extended period away from the squad. According to information from the event organizers, the former Atalanta player did not receive an invitation to participate in the farewell event and will therefore not enter the Monumental Stadium with the other World Cup-winning squad members.

The absence of the other four players is related to their respective club schedules.

Reports indicate that Roma did not approve Molina and Dybala's travel to Argentina for the event, citing that the team has several important matches coming up and needs both players to remain with the squad for preparations.

Similarly, Rodrigo De Paul will also stay in Spain to continue daily training with Valencia. The midfielder is currently focused on preparing for this weekend's La Liga match against Racing Santander and therefore did not return to Argentina.

The last confirmed absentee is goalkeeper Franco Armani. As his current club Atlético Nacional will face Deportes Tolima on October 7th local time, he is unable to participate in Messi's farewell event.

Despite the absence of five World Cup-winning squad members, 20 members of the 2022 Qatar World Cup-winning squad have confirmed their attendance at the Monumental Stadium to accompany Messi in his final national team match.

According to reports, the 20 confirmed players attending are:

Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martínez, Gerónimo Rulli.

Defenders: Gonzalo Montiel, Cristian Romero, Germán Pezzella, Nicolás Otamendi, Lisandro Martínez, Marcos Tagliafico, Marcos Acuña.

Midfielders: Leandro Paredes, Ángel Di María, Giovani Lo Celso, Enzo Fernández, Exequiel Palacios, Alexis Mac Allister.

Forwards: Ángel Di María, Julián Álvarez, Atalanta Córrea, Álvaro Morata, Lautaro Martínez.

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