Is Lionel Messi playing today? Projected lineups for Argentina vs Iceland final pre-World Cup friendly

Argentina will play their final warmup match before their 2026 FIFA World Cup opener on Tuesday. They will take on Iceland at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama, and Lionel Messi will be part of the squad, although it remains unclear whether he will start or come off the bench.

Head coach Lionel Scaloni confirmed Messi’s availability for the match during Monday’s press conference, saying: “He is going to play; what I don’t know is how many minutes. I still have to speak with him, we still have today’s training session. We will see how many minutes to avoid taking any kind of risk, and we will decide then. But in principle, yes, he will get minutes.”

This is welcome news for Argentina, as the forward missed last Saturday’s friendly against Honduras while completing the final stage of his recovery from the muscle issue he suffered with Inter Miami on May 24.

The reigning World Cup champions face their final test before next Tuesday’s Group J opener against Algeria. Their opponents on this occasion will be Iceland, the first European side they have faced since the 2022 World Cup final against France. However, Iceland are considered a lesser challenge, having failed to secure qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

Projected Argentina lineup

Unlike Saturday’s match against Honduras, when most of the squad’s key players did not start, Argentina are expected to field several of their biggest stars against Iceland. That will probably include Lionel Messi alongside Lautaro Martinez in attack.

Lionel Scaloni’s projected XI to face Iceland is: Geronimo Rulli; Nicolas Capaldo, Cristian Romero, Nicolas Otamendi, Nicolas Gonzalez; Rodrigo De Paul, Enzo Fernandez, Alexis Mac Allister, Thiago Almada; Lionel Messi, Lautaro Martinez.

Projected Iceland lineup

After finishing third in Group D of the European qualifiers behind France and Ukraine, Iceland were eliminated from contention for a place at the 2026 World Cup. As a result, their goal during the June FIFA international window has been to test themselves against top-level opponents while beginning preparations for the next cycle. After a 1-0 loss to Japan last week, they now face the difficult challenge of taking on Argentina.

Head coach Arnar Gunnlaugsson‘s projected lineup is: Hakon Valdimarsson; Logi Tomasson, Hordur Magnusson, Daniel Gretarsson, Stefan Thordarson, Dagur Thorhallsson; Kristian Hlynsson, Andri Baldursson, Gisli Thordarson, Mikael Ellertsson; Brynjolfur Willumsson.