How is Scaloni using Messi?

Scaloni knows that if he gives Messi space and service, he can do the rest. But Argentina have spent almost two decades learning that building around Messi is not as simple as making him the main man.

Ironically, Sabella was criticised by the Argentinian press more than a decade earlier for doing something similar when he made Messi the central figure of his team.

Upon his appointment in 2011, Sabella dropped Carlos Tevez and made a big play to place Messi as his side's main attacking thrust instead. It was a controversial call, but it removed some of the friction that had existed between the two under Maradona and Basile in the preceding years.

There were constant rumours that Messi's influence did not end there. There were even reports that the Barcelona man was allowed to make tactical adjustments at half-time in Argentina's World Cup opener in 2014 against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Whatever the truth, it almost worked, with Sabella leading La Albiceleste to the final, only losing 1-0 in extra time to Germany. Messi picked up the Player of the Tournament award too, although there was a feeling that he could have achieved even more with greater balance in the team.

Gerardo Martino leaned the other way during his two Copa Americas in charge of Argentina, with Messi netting five goals and four assists in 2016 – albeit international silverware still eluded a team accused of being too top-heavy.

Even Maradona, who had experienced special treatment from his international boss Carlos Bilardo on the way to winning the 1986 World Cup and reaching the final four years later, could not master Messi. El Diez's desire to get the most out of his star man may have proved a hindrance for another natural talent who needed space to thrive.

"Maradona was all about the Argentina national team and he wanted Messi to be his successor," said 2010 squad member Jonas Gutierrez in book, How to Win the World Cup. "He tried to get the best out of him and tried to speak to him in the best way. You have to treat Messi in a different way because there aren't many players like him, so Maradona tried to share all his experience with him to make him a better player."

Learning from past Argentina coaches

All of those experiences have led to this point. Scaloni has not simply handed Argentina to Messi, he’s created a team that feeds his strengths and maintains enough structure around him at the same time – something that’s even more important given his age.

The team is better with its mercurial man as its heartbeat, even if he is in the twilight of his career and has played for Inter Miami since 2023.

Arguably, the less intense environment of MLS has helped Messi manage the effects of Father Time, allowing him to peak for the World Cup in the same way as an ageing tennis player does for Grand Slams.

The national team has undoubtedly become Messi's priority in more recent years, although building a team around that could have backfired on Scaloni if his playmaker could not reach the heights expected of him.

Instead, all of those previous experiments have culminated in Messi's World Cup zenith now. Nobody could have foreseen that it would be in his late 30s, but there is little question that player and manager have found the formula.

The next question is whether Scaloni and Messi can turn an impressive start into becoming the first nation to retain the World Cup in 64 years.