Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni hints that Mateo Retegui did not entirely convince him, so he didn’t tempt him away from Italy.
The Argentine-born forward has received his first Italy call-up and could start against England on Thursday.
“If he plays for Italy, he will do well,” Scaloni said at a press conference on Tuesday.
“It makes no sense to think about whether he could play for Argentina and affect the player’s future if we are not convinced. It had already happened with Marcos Senesi. It makes no sense to block a career. We have many players who we rate highly in that position and the future will tell us if we were right.”
Italy CT Roberto Mancini has admitted that he didn’t believe Retegui would agree to play for the Azzurri, but the 23-year-old surprised the coach by accepting to play for the Azzurri.
Read more – WHY MANCINI CALLED UP RETEGUI FOR ITALY’S EURO 2024 QUALIFIERS
Several Serie A stars, including Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala, are available for Argentina during the international break in March.
“I told Di Maria after Russia 2018 that he shouldn’t have quit,” said Scaloni.
“I think he will continue to be available with Messi and Otamendi because they are top players, but if they want to retire [from international football], it will be their choice.”