Agustín Giay and José Manuel López were the first call-ups to reach Argentina and join Lionel Scaloni’s national-team camp. Both travelled from Brazil after fulfilling commitments with Palmeiras and opened a gathering that leads into friendlies against Uruguay and Costa Rica. The scene carried extra significance because this is the team’s first two-match international window after Lionel Messi’s farewell.
As the hours passed, a sizeable Europe-based group followed, including Emiliano Martínez, Alexis Mac Allister, Leonardo Balerdi, Equi Fernández, Exequiel Palacios, Santiago Castro, Matías Soulé, Valentín Barco and Facundo Medina. Nico Paz, Julián Álvarez, Nicolás Tagliafico and Franco Mastantuono arrived later. The staggered travel schedule allowed the squad to come together before the first formal session at the Ezeiza training complex.
The programme began on Tuesday, November 10, with a closed morning practice. Argentina will train again on Wednesday from 5pm, with an opening period available to the media. Scaloni therefore has only a small number of sessions to organise a group containing established players, returning figures and newcomers trying to secure a place before two matches packed into a five-day span.
Argentina will host Uruguay at La Bombonera on Friday, November 13, from 8pm. The second fixture comes against Costa Rica on Tuesday, November 17, at Córdoba’s Mario Alberto Kempes stadium. They are friendlies, but the use of two grounds with strong public resonance and the transition surrounding the number ten shirt give the window greater meaning than a routine set of year-end tests.
Giay is a credible option at right-back and was asked immediately about the future of the number ten. He refused to claim a decision belonging to the coach, while identifying Nico Paz as one possible candidate. His answer captured the atmosphere of the squad: Messi’s legacy remains unavoidable, yet the staff must create new roles instead of pretending that one individual can provide a direct replacement.
López, meanwhile, gains an attacking opportunity because Lautaro Martínez is absent. The striker said he must make use of any minutes he receives while carrying a demanding Palmeiras schedule that includes the Copa Libertadores final against Estudiantes. He brings height, penalty-area presence and a different reference point to a forward line that also features Julián Álvarez and several more mobile profiles.
The immediate purpose is not to proclaim heirs but to collect answers. Scaloni needs to assess combinations, manage workloads and determine how the newer players fit within a collective identity that is already recognisable. Uruguay provides the first examination in Buenos Aires and Costa Rica offers a second reading in Córdoba. Giay and López embody the starting point: competitive, ambitious footballers with room to earn a role in the next phase.
