Messi's farewell has a kickoff time, and Argentina's first team without him is taking shape

Lionel Messi's last Argentina match has an hour. The AFA confirmed the kickoff times for all three October friendlies on Monday, and the farewell against Benin at the Estadio Monumental is now set for 20:00 in Buenos Aires on Tuesday, Oct. 6 — 07:00 on Wednesday, Oct. 7 in Shanghai 1.

The two matches before it start at 21:00 in Argentina, 08:00 the next morning in Shanghai: Argentina v Bolivia in Córdoba on Wednesday, and Argentina v Burkina Faso at the Monumental on Saturday, Oct. 3 1. Messi plays in the Benin match only 2, and that night is Nicolás Otamendi's last in an Argentina shirt too 34.

Córdoba is the only match in this window still carrying FIFA's sanction on the AFA for incidents at the 2026 World Cup. Half the Mario Alberto Kempes is closed to spectators, and ESPN Deportes reported on Monday that the match is sold out 5.

Both Monumental matches are set for full capacity. The half-capacity penalty that had been attached to the second of them is suspended, leaving the Córdoba restriction alone in this window, ESPN Deportes reported, citing Gustavo Yarroch on BDE 5. Tickets for the Oct. 6 farewell are gone 6. The Benin match would be Messi's 208th Argentina appearance; the first 207 brought 125 goals and 68 assists 4.

Messi was not at Ezeiza on Monday. The squad trained as a full group for the first time since its weekend off, with Messi, Rodrigo De Paul and Giovani Lo Celso still to arrive — the three players who join for the Benin match alone 27.

No arrival date has been fixed. Infobae and Bolavip both report that Messi is expected to link up after the Bolivia match, which would put him into training from the weekend 34. MLS gives him the room for it: Inter Miami play next on Oct. 10 8.

Monday's session at the Predio Lionel Andrés Messi ran from the gym to tactical work and ended with four blocks of small-sided football, with the first 30 minutes open to accredited media 9. Thiago Almada and Nicolás Tagliafico kept to their own programmes, joined by Tobías Andrada 29.

Scaloni has been weighing two shapes for Córdoba, both built on the same back line of Emiliano Martínez; Agustín Giay, Cristian Romero, Lisandro Martínez and Facundo Medina 3. The first puts Alexis Mac Allister alone in front of the defence, with Exequiel Palacios and Valentín Barco either side of him and Nicolás Paz at No. 10. The second pairs Palacios and Mac Allister as a double pivot, with Franco Mastantuono and Paz wide. Both put Lautaro Martínez and Julián Álvarez up front together, a partnership that was rare while Messi was available 37.

Bolivia arrive off a 2-0 defeat by Paraguay in the United States on Sunday, both goals from Miguel Almirón 10. Óscar Villegas has 26 players in his squad, and goalkeeper Carlos Lampe is the notable omission 3.

Colombia's Jhon Ospina referees in Córdoba, with Miguel Roldán and Roberto Padilla as assistants and Carlos Ortega as fourth official 11. Scaloni speaks at 14:15 in Buenos Aires on Tuesday — 01:15 Wednesday in Shanghai — and the squad flies to Córdoba after the training session that follows 79.

MLS is in its international break, and Inter Miami stay third in the Eastern Conference on 46 points 12. Sunday's 2-1 win for Columbus produced the week's sharpest words from the other bench. Columbus coach Laurent Courtois said of Inter Miami: "I would be red carded after five minutes against those guys. It's too much. What they do is bad for the game and it's sad" 13. Miami coach Kily González said the referee let two moments go before Columbus's late winner, a handball and a foul on Rodrigo De Paul, and accepted that the goal itself was valid on the replay 13.

Messi's free kick in that match was his 12th direct free-kick goal for Inter Miami in all competitions, and his sixth this season 14.

Lamine Yamal has described what he said to Messi as the two embraced after the World Cup final, in a Guardian interview ESPN carried on Monday. "I said thank you for everything you gave football," Yamal said. "I don't do things to look nice for the photo — that came from inside" 15.

Argentina's three kickoff times are now official; the Córdoba and Burkina Faso matches both start at 21:00 local, and the farewell an hour earlier 1. Inter Miami's next match kicks off at 19:30 ET on Oct. 10, 07:30 on Oct. 11 in Shanghai 8.