(VIDEO) Messi is preparing for the Copa América and the lucky South American star who took his jersey home with him

Lionel Messi played for around 34 minutes in the Argentina vs. Ecuador friendly match yesterday that took place at Soldier Field. Argentina defeated Ecuador 1-0 thanks to a goal from Angel Di Maria in the first half. Despite not playing for a lot of minutes, everyone from the Ecuador team wanted to receive Messi’s shirt, and the lucky player to swap shirts was Kendry Paez. The 17-year-old attacking midfielder plays for Independiente Del Valle, but last year, it was announced that he will join Chelsea in the Premier League on his 18th birthday, which will be in the summer of 2025. He is one of the most exciting talents in South America and the exchange of shirts between Paez and Messi could surely be a memorable one as the Ecuadorian could become a star in the future. Paez was wearing the number 10 shirt for Ecuador, which shows how much they leave in the young player as the future of the national team.

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Messi and Argentina are preparing for the Copa America, and after the Ecuador match, they will be playing against Guatemala on Friday at the FedEx Field in Maryland. That would be the last friendly match before the Copa America starts. Argentina will be the team to play in the opener of the tournament on June 20th as they will take on Canada in Group A at the Mercedez-Benz Stadium.

After the opener of Copa America, Argentina will be playing against Chile on June 25th at the MetLife Stadium; they will be their second group-stage opponents. Their last group stage match will be against Peru on June 29th at the Hard Rock Stadium. Argentina, if they make it out of the group, will face an opponent from Group B in the quarterfinals. Group B has Ecuador, Jamaica, Mexico, and Venezuela.

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Lionel Scaloni on the playing time of Lionel Messi

Many fans were concerned as to why Messi was not given a lot of minutes during the Argentina vs Ecuador match as it was only a friendly to prepare for the Copa America. Despite Messi being 36 years old, he continues to be influential on the pitch, as he has shown with Inter Miami. The manager of the Argentina national team, Lionel Scaloni, explained why he only gave Messi 34 minutes of football against Ecuador. Scaloni said, “There are times when there is no need to take risks, not only with Leo (Messi). The idea is to take a little care of everyone and for them to arrive in perfect conditions.”

Scaloni also gave a heads up that he will give the final list of players that will play in the Copa America with Argentina as some could miss out. Scaloni said, “There are only a few days left to prepare the final list. We will do this based on what we think is best for the team.” Messi is not expected to miss out on the final list of Argentina’s squad, but everyone else is uncertain.