Lionel Scaloni: How Argentina’s unlikely manager rebuilt Messi and a golden era

The man that cannot control a traffic. It was Diego Maradona’s brutal assessment of Lionel Scaloni when he was appointed the full-time manager of Argentina in 2018. Argentina had a plethora of glittering names to choose from: the cult figure Marcelo Bielsa, the new-age revolutionary Mauricio Pochettino, the angel of dark arts in black suits, Diego Simeone.

Yet, to resurrect from the post-Moscow World Cup catastrophe, they turned to a largely unknown and unglamorous man. His club journey was scattered in the mid-table clubs of Italy and Spain. He wore his national stripes only seven times. He briefly managed Sevilla and Argentina’s U-20 squad, before joining the backroom staff of Jorge Sampaoli during his catastrophic reign. The federation chose him, reportedly, because he came cheap, and because he was not egoistic; the simplicity of his upbringing in a farming household in Pujato, Santa Fe, showed.

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He was in the hotel gym with the U-20 squad when the phone buzzed. Shocked, but prepared. The conversation ended with the first brief: to pick the nucleus of the side for the Copa America they had not won in 26 years. But before he drew the list, he knew his foremost mission. To cajole Messi, who was disillusioned with the national team, back to the side. He had not retired yet, but his commitment to the national side was waning.

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Later that night, over the dinner table, Scaloni and his assistant Pablo Aimar, the silver-footed forward Messi idolised, texted Messi. The content was simple: “Hi, Leo, it’s Scaloni. Pablo and I want to talk to you.” Messi was then in Barcelona’s pre-season conditioning camp. In the morning, Messi video-called them back and after the conversation ended, Messi swore his allegiance to Project Scaloneta.

Messi time-travelled to his debut, against Hungary in 2005 when he was red-carded 45 seconds into the game. “I was in tears, but I remember Leo (Scaloni) and Juan (Pablo Sorin) protesting, pleading with the referee. After the game, I was still crying but Leo would comfort me. I found the eyes of a brother,” he told Canal TV.

Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni hugs Lionel Messi after the World Cup round of 16 soccer match against Egypt in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Messi would say after the Qatar triumph: “Subconsciously, you feel like you owe him something, because he was the one who brought me in. I am not going to let him down.” The emotion is perhaps the foundation of Argentina’s golden run in the Scaloni era: two Copa titles, a World Cup, and a potential defence.

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The manager’s biggest challenge was not tactics or stringing together a strong side. There was no shortage of gifted footballers. But to knit together a group that fought and functioned, that gelled and blended. After the Qatar World Cup triumph, he explained: “Tactics come second, first you need the right men.” By the right men, he meant not those who suited his structure, but those with the character to carry Messi’s burden rather than add to it.

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The 2022 squad was not the best in the tournament; the 2026 side is not the most dazzling either. Messi and best friend Rodrigo de Paul turn up for Inter Miami; one was plucked from the Brazilian league. All four regulars from the English Premier League were returning from horrible seasons. Seven of the squad were 30-plus. Argentina were doomed to fail this tournament; there were moments it seemed they might. But every time Scaloni’s men seemed to be drifting toward the exit, they produced a rousing comeback. Two goals down against Egypt till the 79th minute, 2-2 in extra time against Cape Verde, Argentina found a way back. Not through radical tactics or jaw-shuddering moves. But through the dint of the will.

That spirit, in essence, is Scaloneta. The zeal to not yield or surrender, the courage to keep fighting until the last drop of blood. “Football is this, not just tactics and strategies,” he said after the Egypt comeback. “Those things are important, no doubt, but if we hadn’t had the heart we had, we would’ve been out,” he added.

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Scaloni achieves this without elaborate tactical discussions in the boardroom, or theatrical gesticulation on the touchline. He is in firm control of his emotions, unless he endures a match of assaulting drama like the one against Egypt. Scaloni cried; as did Messi and his men.

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Scaloni is not merely a vibes manager. He used a different formation almost every match in 2022, starting Ángel Di María wide left in a 4-3-3 to build a front three that neutered France’s habit of playing out from the back. It stifled them, creating space for Argentina’s midfielders to overload France’s own. With Antoine Griezmann locked down, France’s offensive threat paled for the first hour.

His ideas are flexible, dependent on his personnel. Argentina’s stock of wingers has dried up, so he did not try to manufacture one, but narrowed the midfield to suit his possession-based style. At times against Egypt, Alexis Mac Allister was the foremost attacking point, while centre-forward Julián Álvarez dropped back. Cristian Romero, pushed forward from his usual centre-back berth, nicked the first of Argentina’s comeback goals.

The nucleus of the team is Messi; it always had been. But only Scaloni could find the ecosystem where Messi could fully flourish.

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Messi and the World Cup was once a tale of unrequited love. Messi gave his heart and soul; the trophy turned a blind eye to its suitor. Scaloni’s predecessor Sampaoli once said: “Messi has a revolver put to his head called the World Cup and if he doesn’t win it, he’s shot and killed. As a result, he can’t enjoy his talent.”

Scaloni unshackled Messi from Sampaoli’s rigid structures, watching him through Messi’s own eyes rather than a manager’s tactics sheet, and let Messi be himself. Knowing his athleticism had faded, he covered him with hard runners, a generation that had grown up idolising Messi and was ready to sacrifice for him to conquer the world.

From Messi-dependencia, it moved to enabling Messi to function at his peak. Little wonder that it coincided with Messi’s most prolific goal-scoring stretch, 15 goals and four assists across 2022 and 2026. He plays with joy, without a revolver on his head. And Scaloni, who Maradona quipped cannot even handle traffic, is managing the best era in Argentina’s football history.