The captain Lionel Messi and five other football players from the Argentine National Team were subjected to a surprise antidoping control by FIFA a few days before the World Cup debut.
In addition to the Barcelona star, the other players who were tested at the training center in Bronnitsy were the goalkeeper Franco Armani, the defender Nicolás Otamendi, the midfielders Marcos Acuña and Eduardo Salvio, and the striker Paulo Dybala, as informed by the Argentine delegation.
Argentina vs. Iceland: date, schedule, and channels around the world for the Argentine debut in the 2018 World Cup
The players were chosen by drawing lots. No further details of the operation were given. Surprise controls are a common practice of FIFA before and during their competitions.
Remember that Argentina arrived at the 2018 World Cup with only one preparation friendly and during this time, coach Jorge Sampaoli has been working on who will be part of the team that will debut against Iceland.
The curious thing is that for this match against Iceland, which will mark the Argentine debut in Russia 2018, Jorge Sampaoli will use the starting lineup number 12. He has never repeated the starting eleven in any of the games he has coached Argentina.