It is expected that it will be difficult to see Argentina's living 'legend' Lionel Messi (37, Inter Miami) at the 2024 Paris Olympics soccer event, which opens in July.

On the 6th (Korean time), Argentine media outlet TyC Sports cited an interview with Javier Mascherano (40), coach of the Argentine Olympic soccer team, and reported, “It has become difficult for Messi to participate in the Olympics.”

With Argentina already confirming its qualification for the Olympics, attention was focused on Messi's participation.

Initially, Messi was selected as a wild card for this year's Paris Games and was expected to participate in the last Olympics of his career. The news that Messi, who won a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, could participate in the Olympics again received a lot of attention.

However, as a result, Messi's chances of going to the Olympics are slim. The fact that Messi's schedule became too tight, with the Copa America (South American Football Championship) taking place right before the Olympics, became an obstacle.

Coach Mascherano, who worked closely with Messi on the national team during his days as a player, expressed his intention to give up his selection as a wild card, saying, “No matter how much Messi is, he needs rest as he has been playing a lot of games recently,” and “I don’t want to bother Messi anymore.”

Messi, captain of the Argentina A national team, plans to participate in the Copa America, which will be held from June 20 to July 14. The Paris Olympics will begin on July 24, just 10 days later.

For Messi, who suffered major and minor injuries ahead of the 2024 season, it is a burden to compete in another tournament immediately after the Copa America. His team, Miami, is also not happy about Messi's long-term departure.

Coach Mascherano said, “I don’t know if Messi will have the strength left to participate in the Paris Olympics right after finishing the Copa America. “Our conversation is not completely over yet, but now we have to take his age into consideration,” he emphasized.

Meanwhile, national team A striker Angel Di Maria (36, Benfica), who was mentioned as another wild card along with Messi, also became difficult to select.

Coach Mascherano explained, “Di Maria said he did not want to take away the opportunity for young players, so he politely declined.”

In men's soccer at the Paris Olympics, 16 teams will participate, divided into 4 groups of 4 teams each, and the group stage will be held, followed by a quarterfinal tournament to determine the gold medalist. Korea, led by coach Hwang Seon-hong, will attempt to qualify for the Olympics through the 2024 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U23 Championship in April. 토토사이트