Published October 10, 2024 by Daniel Lopez
Lionel Messi and a special match in 2007 | Reuters
The October FIFA date marks the return of Leo Messi to the Argentine National Team. After being injured in the final of the Copa América 2024, the ’10’ was finally able to be called up again by Lionel Scaloni for the matches against Venezuela and Bolivia. The truth is that the Argentine star will return to play at the Monumental de Maturín stadium, a venue where he played but in an unusual event.
The stadium was built for the 2007 Copa América and Argentina will appear for the first time in Maturín, but it will not be the first occasion for Leo Messi. In June 2008 he participated in a friendly match, an event in which he starred alongside Ronaldinho: The Match from Another Galaxy. It was a match in which “friends” of both stars participated and that had a lot of presence on the field.
Leo Messi was 21 years old and The Another Galaxy Party was a benefit eventwhich had its first version in December 2007 with a match in San Luis, Argentina, but on that occasion the ’10’ was injured and did not participate in the duel. The ‘rematch’ was organized for the following year and the organizers took advantage of the fact that Venezuela had everything prepared for the Copa América.
The meeting was also not experienced with the emotion that was believed. The number of spectators reached around 60% and torrential rain fell that complicated access and the playing field. Among Leo Messi’s friends were players like Roberto Abbondanzieri, Fabricio Coloccini, Rolando Schiavi, Falcao, Andrés D’Alessandro, Juan Arango, Martín Palermo and Sebastián Abreu.
In the case of Ronaldinho, players like Julio Baptista, Edmundo and Vampeta played, but The big names had left within hours of the match: Dida, Robinho, Luis Fabiano and Maiconamong others. The friendly ended 7-7 and the event had been organized by Guillermo Marín, who had a strong conflict with the local government because many of the planned players dropped out.
Venezuela vs Argentina: Schedule and how to watch live on TV and streaming
Argentina will visit Venezuela this Thursday, October 10 from 6:00 p.m.. The ‘Albiceleste’ will compete on date 9 of the South American Qualifiers towards the 2026 World Cup. The duel can be seen live on television on Telefe and TyC Sports. In addition, it can also be seen on the streaming channels of both. A victory for Lionel Scaloni’s team could bring the World Champion closer to the next World Cup event.
