Scaloni calls up Balerdi, Soulé and Castro for Argentina; Dybala and Molina left out

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni has named three AS Roma players in his squad for friendlies against Bolivia on 30 September, Burkina Faso on 3 October and Benin on 6 October. The trio are defender Leonardo Balerdi, and forwards Santiago Castro and Matías Soulé. Balerdi has already earned 11 caps for Argentina, while Castro and Soulé are both awaiting their debuts for the national team and will be hoping to feature for the first time. The friendlies hold particular significance as they will include Lionel Messi's final match for Argentina. The legendary forward will play his farewell game against Benin at the Monumental in Buenos Aires, providing a fitting conclusion to his international career.

Argentina head coach Scaloni has selected three Roma players for the national team's forthcoming friendlies: Leonardo Balerdi, Matías Soulé and Santiago Castro. The trio will feature in matches against Bolivia on 30 September, Burkina Faso on 3 October and Benin on 6 October. Balerdi has impressed in Roma's defence, while Soulé and Castro return to the squad after falling out of the technical staff's rotation. Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina have been omitted from the selection. Lionel Messi has also been included in the squad. The Argentine legend, who previously announced his retirement from international football, will bid farewell to supporters in the final match against Benin at the Monumental before departing the Selección.

Roma won away at Torino to record four straight victories in the opening weeks of the 2026-27 season. The result sets up a title clash against Inter that could reveal much about the club's genuine ambitions. Gasperini has the squad running smoothly, and the summer transfer activity has equipped Roma with quality depth across the bench to rotate effectively across three competitions. The manager now has high-calibre alternatives capable of stepping in at any position, strengthening the bench with experienced signings made in the current window.

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni has named three AS Roma players in his squad for friendlies against Bolivia on 30 September, Burkina Faso on 3 October and Benin on 6 October. The trio are defender Leonardo Balerdi, and forwards Santiago Castro and Matías Soulé. Balerdi has already earned 11 caps for Argentina, while Castro and Soulé are both awaiting their debuts for the national team and will be hoping to feature for the first time. The friendlies hold particular significance as they will include Lionel Messi's final match for Argentina. The legendary forward will play his farewell game against Benin at the Monumental in Buenos Aires, providing a fitting conclusion to his international career.

Argentina head coach Scaloni has selected three Roma players for the national team's forthcoming friendlies: Leonardo Balerdi, Matías Soulé and Santiago Castro. The trio will feature in matches against Bolivia on 30 September, Burkina Faso on 3 October and Benin on 6 October. Balerdi has impressed in Roma's defence, while Soulé and Castro return to the squad after falling out of the technical staff's rotation. Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina have been omitted from the selection. Lionel Messi has also been included in the squad. The Argentine legend, who previously announced his retirement from international football, will bid farewell to supporters in the final match against Benin at the Monumental before departing the Selección.

Roma hold first place in Serie A ahead of Saturday's fixture against Inter. The side has conceded only one goal in the league this season—Ederson's effort in Atalanta's limited attempts—a defensive record matched among Europe's top five leagues only by Arsenal, the Europa League runners-up. In Germany, Freiburg lead with one goal conceded in three matches; in Spain, Real Madrid and Barcelona both have four; in France, four clubs have conceded two. Gasperini has overhauled Roma's defence compared to last season. Out are N'Dicka, Wesley and Koné; in are Balerdi, Molina and Pisilli. Balerdi and Molina have just arrived—Argentine internationals of substance, neither a routine acquisition. Balerdi missed the World Cup through injury; Molina was Copa América runner-up alongside Paulo Dybala after winning the World Cup in Qatar. The contrast with last season is stark. A year ago, Gasperini would have replaced N'Dicka and Wesley with Ziolkowski and Tsimikas, neither of whom remain at the club. Similarly, El Aynaoui would have started in place of Koné, but he too was moved on after just one season.

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni has named three AS Roma players in his squad for friendlies against Bolivia on 30 September, Burkina Faso on 3 October and Benin on 6 October. The trio are defender Leonardo Balerdi, and forwards Santiago Castro and Matías Soulé. Balerdi has already earned 11 caps for Argentina, while Castro and Soulé are both awaiting their debuts for the national team and will be hoping to feature for the first time. The friendlies hold particular significance as they will include Lionel Messi's final match for Argentina. The legendary forward will play his farewell game against Benin at the Monumental in Buenos Aires, providing a fitting conclusion to his international career.

Argentina head coach Scaloni has selected three Roma players for the national team's forthcoming friendlies: Leonardo Balerdi, Matías Soulé and Santiago Castro. The trio will feature in matches against Bolivia on 30 September, Burkina Faso on 3 October and Benin on 6 October. Balerdi has impressed in Roma's defence, while Soulé and Castro return to the squad after falling out of the technical staff's rotation. Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina have been omitted from the selection. Lionel Messi has also been included in the squad. The Argentine legend, who previously announced his retirement from international football, will bid farewell to supporters in the final match against Benin at the Monumental before departing the Selección.

Roma secured three points at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, with Donyell Malen again proving decisive by scoring the opening goal—his sixth of the Serie A season—before being replaced shortly before the hour by Santiago Castro. The Argentine striker entered with his customary intensity but made less of an impact than in previous appearances. In his post-match analysis for DAZN, Cristian Brocchi drew a striking parallel between Castro and Lautaro Martinez during his early years at Inter, when he competed for playing time alongside Mauro Icardi. Brocchi highlighted the similarities between the Malen–Castro pairing and the 2018–19 Inter front line featuring Icardi and Lautaro. The former midfielder said: "I see that player in him. He has many qualities, even if he still needs to improve in many aspects, just like that young Lautaro who arrived at Inter and nobody expected could become the player he is today." He added: "Santiago is like that and can give a lot to Roma. Malen is impressive, but Roma will play many matches and will also need Castro and his character." Brocchi was drawing on Lautaro's own trajectory: in his first Serie A season in the Inter shirt, the Argentine—then 21, Castro's current age—managed only 9 goals despite Icardi's dominant form in a campaign that yielded 29 goals in 34 appearances for the senior striker. Lautaro's breakthrough came the following season when he finished with 21 goals.

Argentina head coach Scaloni has selected three Roma players for the national team's forthcoming friendlies: Leonardo Balerdi, Matías Soulé and Santiago Castro. The trio will feature in matches against Bolivia on 30 September, Burkina Faso on 3 October and Benin on 6 October. Balerdi has impressed in Roma's defence, while Soulé and Castro return to the squad after falling out of the technical staff's rotation. Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina have been omitted from the selection. Lionel Messi has also been included in the squad. The Argentine legend, who previously announced his retirement from international football, will bid farewell to supporters in the final match against Benin at the Monumental before departing the Selección.

Roma won 2–0 away at Torino with goals from Malen and Pisilli to remain level on points with Inter at the Serie A summit, both teams on four victories from their opening four matches. The squad returned to training at Trigoria this morning ahead of Saturday's meeting at the Stadio Olimpico against Inter, who sit joint-top with a perfect record. Lorenzo Pellegrini is available after recovering from injury and is in contention to make his seasonal debut. Inter's preparations have been hampered by injury setbacks. Midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu will miss Saturday's fixture after suffering a muscular strain of the right adductor, with Inter confirming: "Hakan Calhanoglu underwent instrumental examinations this morning which revealed a muscle strain of the right adductor. His condition will be assessed in the coming days." Defender John Stones, who departed yesterday during his competitive debut with injury, is also a doubt; his status will be monitored day by day until the match. John Galantic made his first appearance at a Lega Serie A assembly as Roma's new chief executive, sitting in on discussions regarding international broadcasting rights. The gathering featured presentations from league chief executive Luigi De Siervo and JP Morgan adviser on investment fund interest and proposals. Galantic told reporters on the sidelines: "It was a first meeting, all good." No clear consensus has emerged among clubs, who have yet to examine the specific financial proposals in detail. Former Roma striker Roberto Pruzzo praised the team's performance against Torino on Radio Radio: "I liked Roma: in the first half-hour it found solutions, exploited opponents' errors. Malen is too decisive and too dangerous, Dybala showed he is in good condition." Analyst Stefano Carina added: "Roma seems to me to have something more even compared to rivals, even Inter, who seem to have some injury problems, especially in defence. Roma instead seems well set, alongside Como. Inter don't have their attackers anywhere else in Italy: Lautaro didn't play yesterday and nobody noticed, but they have problems that Roma and Como don't have."

Roma hold first place in Serie A ahead of Saturday's fixture against Inter. The side has conceded only one goal in the league this season—Ederson's effort in Atalanta's limited attempts—a defensive record matched among Europe's top five leagues only by Arsenal, the Europa League runners-up. In Germany, Freiburg lead with one goal conceded in three matches; in Spain, Real Madrid and Barcelona both have four; in France, four clubs have conceded two. Gasperini has overhauled Roma's defence compared to last season. Out are N'Dicka, Wesley and Koné; in are Balerdi, Molina and Pisilli. Balerdi and Molina have just arrived—Argentine internationals of substance, neither a routine acquisition. Balerdi missed the World Cup through injury; Molina was Copa América runner-up alongside Paulo Dybala after winning the World Cup in Qatar. The contrast with last season is stark. A year ago, Gasperini would have replaced N'Dicka and Wesley with Ziolkowski and Tsimikas, neither of whom remain at the club. Similarly, El Aynaoui would have started in place of Koné, but he too was moved on after just one season.