Report: Argentina make U-Turn on Nico Gonzalez call-up

Club News

November 7, 2024 - 8:00 am

The Argentine national team have reportedly decided to change their stance on calling up Juventus winger Nico Gonzalez for international duty.

In their next two World Cup qualifiers, the Albicelsete will take on Paraguay away from home on November 14th before hosting Peru five days later.

Lionel Scaloni’s selections were announced on Tuesday, and it raised a few eyebrows. For instance, Juventus youth product Enzo Barrenechea has earned his maiden call-up for the senior squad. The 23-year-old was used as a bargaining chip alongside Samuel Iling-Junior in the deal that saw Douglas Luiz move from Aston Villa to the Bianconeri. He’s been plying his trade on loan at Valencia.

Moreover, the World Champions decided to add Gonzalez to the squad despite being out of action since sustaining a muscle injury during the Champions League against RB Leipzig on October 2nd.

This call-up naturally caused a stir in Turin. While the 26-year-old has been tipped to make a swift return to action, he hasn’t fully recovered just yet, and the last thing Juventus want is a relapse while on international duty. Moreover, the long flight to South America isn’t advisable in his case.

But thankfully for Juventus, Scaloni and his staff have now reconsidered their decision, reveals TyC Sports journalist Gastón Edul (via JuventusNews24).

Therefore, the former Fiorentina star won’t be traveling to South America during the international break, but will remain in Turin to work on regaining his optimal physical condition. It remains to be seen if he’ll be part of Thiago Motta’s squad for Saturday’s Derby della Mole clash against Torino.

While we’re still awaiting an official confirmation on Gonzalez, here is the original squad called up by Scaloni.

Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa), Walter Benitez (PSV Eindhoven) and Geronimo Rulli (Olympique de Marseille).

Defenders: Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Gonzalo Montiel (Sevilla), Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur), German Pezzella (River Plate), Leonardo Balerdi (Olympique de Marseille), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), Nehuen Perez (Porto), Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United) and Nicolas Tagliafico (Olympique Lyonnais).

Midfielders: Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea), Leandro Paredes (AS Roma), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Rodrigo De Paul (Atletico Madrid), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis), Enzo Barrenechea (Valencia), Thiago Almada (Botafogo), Facundo Buonanotte (Leicester City) and Nicolas Paz (Como 1907).

Forwards: Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United), Nicolas Gonzalez (Juventus), Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan) and Valentin Castellanos (Lazio).