Argentina coach Diego Maradona named his final 23-man squad for the World Cup on Wednesday, which includes Lionel Messi of Barcelona, Carlos Tevez of Manchester City and most of the country’s other big stars.
The big surprise was the inclusion of defender Ariel Garce, who played his first international match for Argentina earlier this month against Haiti. The list released on Wednesday includes tremendous power up front, led by Messi, Carlos Tevez and Gonzalo Higuain.
Argentina faces Canada on Monday at River Plate’s stadium in Buenos Aires, in what is expected to be its last warm-up before the World Cup. The 1978 and ’86 champion opens on June 12 in South Africa against Nigeria and also faces Greece and South Korea in Group B.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Sergio Romero (AZ Alkmaar), Mariano Andujar (Catania), Diego Pozo (Colon).
Defenders: Nicolas Otamendi (Velez Sarsfield), Martin Demichelis (Bayern Munich), Walter Samuel (Inter Milan), Gabriel Heinze (Marseille), Nicolas Burdisso (AS Roma), Ariel Garce (Colon), Clemente Rodriguez (Estudiantes).
Midfielders: Jonas Gutierrez (Newcastle), Juan Sebastian Veron (Estudiantes), Javier Mascherano (Liverpool), Angel Di Maria (Benfica), Javier Pastore (Palermo), Maxi Rodriguez (Liverpool), Mario Bolatti (Fiorentina).
Forwards: Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Gonzalo Higuain (Real Madrid), Carlos Tevez (Manchester City), Diego Milito (Inter Milan), Sergio Aguero (Atletico Madrid), Martin Palermo (Boca Juniors).
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