Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni has insisted he won’t risk Tottenham midfielder Giovani Lo Celso for the World Cup if he is not fully fit.
The midfielder was likely to be a part of the Argentina squad in Qatar later this month after establishing himself as a key player while on loan at Villarreal.
He joined the Spanish club on loan from Tottenham in the summer after failing to secure a more permanent exit, having also spent the second half of last season on loan with the Spanish side.
However, his chances of making the tournament have been thrown into jeopardy this week after he picked up a hamstring injury.
That’s left him as a ‘major doubt’, with the injury worse than first thought and Argentina’s medical team concerned that he will not be able to recover in the three weeks before the tournament.
Ultimately the decision will rest with manager Scaloni, but he insists he will not be taking any risks with the Tottenham man.
“For now, I’m calm, because the only thing we can do is wait for the medical results,” TyC Sports report him saying.
“These are things that could happen, we are assessing his situation as well as that of other players. We are waiting for news to see what decision we make.
“We still have time to make the list and we’ll see how the boys respond, but it’s still a complicated situation. In these conditions with several guys who are not fit to play, we decided to wait until the last minute.
“The first thing I told him and that I tell everyone is that the player’s health comes first. We are not going to take any risk that is not normal, we will not do anything unnecessary for his health.
“They are guys who have been with us since day one and that weighs on us and we feel it, but we will think about the good of the team.”
