Argentina vs Algeria FIFA World Cup 2026 Preview: Everything you need to know

World Cup - Grp. J

Kansas City Stadium

Argentina vs Algeria kicks off on 16 Jun 2026 at 21:00 EST on 17 Jun at 01:00 GMT.

Argentina vs Algeria: Messi meets Mahrez

Lionel Messi will play in a sixth World Cup as he captains holders Argentina at the 2026 tournament. In their way on the opening day will be Riyad Mahrez's Algeria. What can we expect from this clash in Kansas City?

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Who are Argentina's coach and key players?

Lionel Scaloni, who led La Albiceleste to World Cup glory in 2022, aims to become the first manager to win it back-to-back since Vittorio Pozzo in 1938, who achieved the staggering feat with Italy.

With 26 appearances, Messi holds the current record for the most World Cup matches by any player - and will join Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, as the only male players to appear in a sixth edition of football's grandest showpiece. There's a strong English flavour in the squad with Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez, Aston Villa 'keeper Emi Martinez, Spurs defender Cristian Romero and Man United defender Lisandro Martinez all picked. Up top, the champions have lethal firepower in the shape of Julian Alvarez and Inter's Lautaro Martinez to operate ahead of Messi, who currently sits on 198 caps for his beloved Argentina.

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Who are Algeria's coach and key players?

35-year-old veteran Riyad Mahrez, formerly of Leicester City and Manchester City, now plies his trade for Saudi side Al Ahli.

Former Spurs midfield playmaker Nabil Bentaleb has been recalled by coach Vladimir Petkovic after seven months in the wilderness, while there are also places for ex-Lyon man Houssem Aouar and Freench-born Marseille star Amine Gouiri.

Bosnian boss Petkovic's recent experience includes stints with Lazio, the Switzerland National Team and Bordeaux.

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Argentina's 26-man World Cup squad

Goalkeepers: Juan Musso (Atletico Madrid), Geronimo Rulli (Marseille), Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa).

Defenders: Leonardo Balerdi (Marseille), Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon), Gonzalo Montiel (River Plate), Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United), Cristian Romero (Tottenham), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), Facundo Medina (Marseille), Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid).

Midfielders: Leandro Paredes (River Plate), Rodrigo de Paul (Inter Miami), Valentin Barco (Strasbourg), Giovani lo Celso (Real Betis), Ezequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea).

Forwards: Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Nicolas Gonzalez (Atletico Madrid), Thiago Almada (Atletico Madrid), Giuliano Simeone (Atletico Madrid), Nico Paz (Como), Jose Manuel Lopez (Palmeiras), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan).

Argentina's Road to the World Cup

A key feature of the holders' qualifying campaign and identity shift since winning the tournament in 2022 was the interchange of midfielders Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández, and Rodrigo de Paul to create a more fluid system. Argentina conceded only 10 goals across 18 CONMEBOL qualifying matches, helping them to top spot in a notoriously difficult phase. This was largely thanks to the consistent work of goalkeeper Emi 'Dibu' Martinez.

Algeria's 26-man World Cup squad

Goalkeepers: Oussama ​Benbot (USM Alger), Melvin Masstil (Stade Nyonnaise), Luca Zidane (Granada)

Defenders: Achraf Abada (USM Alger), Rayan Ait-Nouri (Manchester City), Zinedine Belaid (JS Kabylie), Rafik ⁠Belghali (Verona), Ramy Bensebaini (Borussia Dortmund), Samir Chergui (Paris FC), Jaouen Hadjam (Young Boys Bern), Aissa ⁠Mandi (Lille), Mohamed Amine Tougai (Esperance)

Midfielders: Houssem Aouar (Al-Ittihad), Nabil Bentaleb (Lille), Hicham Boudaoui (Nice), Fares Chaibi (Eintracht Frankfurt), Ibrahim Maza (Bayer Leverkusen), Yassine ‌Titraoui (Charleroi), Ramiz Zerrouki (Twente)

Forwards: Mohamed Amine Amoura (Wolfsburg), Nadir Benbouali (Gyori ETO), ‌Adil Boulbina (Al-Duhail), Fares Ghedjemis (Frosinone), Amine Gouiri (Marseille), Riyad Mahrez (Al-Ahli), Anis Hadj Moussa (Feyenoord).

Algeria's Road to the World Cup

After heartbreakingly missing out on the previous two tournaments, the Desert Foxes dominated their qualifying group to book their ticket to North America, securing their first World Cup appearance since 2014.

A key feature was their attacking football. Algeria averaged 2.4 goals per game, driven by a breakout performance from forward Mohamed Amoura, who scored 10 times in qualifying.

Team news & squads

Argentina vs Algeria Probable lineups

Argentina

ARG

Formation

Algeria

ALG

Algeria

ALG

Manager

• L. Scaloni

Argentina are managed by Lionel Scaloni, though no confirmed injury or suspension information is currently available for the Albiceleste, and no probable starting lineup has been announced. Updates will be added closer to kick-off as the squad picture becomes clearer.

Algeria head into the match under coach Vladimir Petkovic, with no injury or suspension data currently confirmed for the Desert Warriors either. A projected XI has not yet been released. Further team news will be updated as it becomes available ahead of the Group J opener.

Form

Argentina arrive in Kansas City in exceptional form, winning all five of their most recent matches without a single defeat. Their most recent outing was a 2-0 friendly victory over Honduras on June 7, following a dominant 5-0 win over Zambia in March. Across those five games, La Albiceleste scored 15 goals and conceded just one, underlining both their attacking firepower and defensive solidity. Four consecutive clean sheets in their last three outings tell their own story.

Algeria's recent form is more mixed but contains a result that will raise eyebrows. Their most impressive performance came on June 3, when they beat the Netherlands 1-0 in a friendly — a result that signals real confidence ahead of the tournament. They also recorded a 7-0 demolition of Guatemala in March. However, a 2-0 loss to Nigeria at the Africa Cup of Nations in January serves as a reminder that Algeria can be vulnerable when facing high-intensity opposition. Across their last five matches, they have won three, drawn one, and lost one.

Head-to-Head Record

ARG

Last match

ALG

1

Win

0

Draws

0

Wins

• Argentina

  4

  -

  3

  Algeria

4

Goals scored

3

Games over 2.5 goals

1/1

Both teams scored

1/1

The head-to-head record between these two nations is sparse. The only previous meeting on record came on June 5, 2007, in a friendly, when Argentina beat Algeria 4-3 in a high-scoring contest. That single encounter offers limited predictive value, but it does confirm that Algeria are capable of scoring against the Albiceleste. Tuesday's Group J fixture will be just the second competitive or friendly meeting between these nations.

Standings

In Group J, Algeria currently sit top of the table, while Argentina are placed second ahead of their opening fixture.