The last time Argentina tried to turn its No. 10 into a shrine, FIFA said no. The AFA voted ahead of the 2002 World Cup to retire the shirt for Diego Maradona, the request was rejected, and Ariel Ortega wore it in Japan and South Korea instead.
Twenty-five years on, the same rule is in the way of the same tribute. FIFA requires national teams to assign consecutive numbers from 1 to 26 at the World Cup and Copa América, leaving no space for a permanently empty jersey at official tournaments.
That has not stopped AFA president Claudio Tapia from committing to the retirement eventually. “Argentina’s No. 10 shirt will be retired when Messi ends his professional career,” Tapia said in an interview with Marca, tying the gesture to the end of Messi’s club career rather than to his international farewell.
The friendly-match loophole
For friendlies and qualifiers, Argentina have more flexibility, and coach Lionel Scaloni has already used it. The No. 10 was left vacant for the recent fixtures against Bolivia, Burkina Faso and Benin, with Messi the only player permitted to wear it until his farewell.
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Scaloni said he had no intention of rushing the choice.
“We are not obliged to assign it for the upcoming matches, so we will give it to no one until after Leo’s farewell match. We just have not yet decided who,” he said.
That workaround runs out at the next official tournament. Whenever Argentina submit a 26-man squad to FIFA or CONMEBOL, the No. 10 will have to be on it.
Nico Paz the frontrunner
The leading candidate to inherit the shirt is Como’s Nico Paz, who scored in Buenos Aires on 6 October with an exquisite left-foot finish from a Messi assist. The 22-year-old playmaker and Real Madrid academy product fits the lineage Argentina want to protect, and he is placed ahead of Thiago Almada, Franco Mastantuono and Alexis Mac Allister in the queue, according to World Soccer Talk.
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Scaloni has refused to settle on a successor. The No. 10 will stay unassigned for the next international window, with the decision pushed into the quieter stretch of the calendar.
Messi closed his international career with a penalty and two assists on 6 October, his 126th goal in his 208th and final appearance. The No. 10 he inherited from Juan Román Riquelme belonged to him for 17 years. The next time Argentina line up at a FIFA tournament, somebody else will have to pull it on.
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