Lionel Messi’s retirement leaves many possible successors for Argentina’s No. 10 shirt

With Lionel Messi’s retirement from the Argentina national team now confirmed, one of the more symbolic questions is who takes over the iconic No. 10 shirt. There is no official word yet on how the decision will be made, and it remains largely speculative at this point, but a handful of names stand out as logical candidates given their standing within the squad.

Unlike the captaincy, which typically falls to the most senior or respected figure in the dressing room and now looks set to go to Cristian Romero, the No. 10 carries a different kind of weight in Argentine football, tied directly to the legacies of Diego Maradona and now Messi himself. Whoever wears it next won’t just be filling a number on the roster, they’ll be stepping into a symbol that carries decades of history and expectation.

Several established figures within the current squad could realistically be handed the shirt. Enzo Fernandez and Alexis Mac Allister both carry significant weight in the dressing room and have been core pieces of this Argentina cycle, while Thiago Almada has continued to develop into an increasingly important creative option for Scaloni.

Nico Paz, still just breaking into the senior squad, rounds out the list as a longer-term bet given his familiarity with the number at club level with Como. There’s also the possibility that Scaloni opts to hold off entirely, letting the number sit without a clear owner for a stretch while the new-look Argentina finds its footing in the post-Messi era.

Who wore the 10 when Messi wasn’t there

The most direct precedent dates back to September 2025, when Franco Mastantuono wore the No. 10 shirt in Argentina’s World Cup qualifier defeat to Ecuador, with Messi left out of that squad entirely.

Going back more than a decade, several others have worn the No. 10 for Argentina whenever Messi wasn’t available: