Messi’s coach Lionel Scaloni reveals he ‘almost left’ Argentina national team after 2022 World Cup

Despite claiming the top of world soccer alongside Lionel Messi, Argentina national team coach Lionel Scaloni highly considered leaving the team.

Lionel Scaloni cemented his name as the best Argentina national team coach in history after achieving 4 back-to-back trophies in a nation that struggled 28 whole years to get one. Despite reaching the top alongside Lionel Messi, Scaloni admitted that he “almost left” the Argentina national team after winning the 2022 World Cup.

On talks with Neura Media‘s Alejandro Fantino, the Argentine coach addressed the moment of doubt he had after conquering the trophy against France: “There was a time, after the World Cup, after Brazil and El Maracana, there was a moment were I wasn’t feeling alright. With myself, I was feeling uncomfortable… some fears that weren’t there before suddenly appeared. It was 6 months after the World Cup, and we immediately had to compete again for the World Cup qualifiers.”

When asked if he felt some sort of desperation or agony, Scaloni gave a blunt answer. “I wouldn’t be able to tell you, because I didn’t talked to anybody. My wife told me to go and speak with a professional, but I saved it for myself. It was during that time after the Maracana where I said ‘I have to think’ because I was feeling I wasn’t at 100%,” he said.

“If you start thinking about what you’ve achieved, maybe it’s counterproductive. I talk about this with my coaching staff, my wife, I was even talking to Pablo Aimar about it. If you start to think that in terms of titles we’ve achieved something unbelievable, and then you start thinking ‘what is next?‘” the Argentine said. “Because we always go for more, the people ask you for more, and maybe your head starts thinking ‘What would be more than this?‘ That’s why I think taking a time to think doesn’t help me,” he added.

Scaloni overcame a challenging period to once again lead the Argentine national team to major success. Since making those unexpected remarks in November 2023, he has risen to the occasion and guided Argentina to victory in the 2024 Copa America.

What made Scaloni change his mind?

The team was enjoying an unprecedented period of success. Yet, coach Scaloni found himself questioning whether he could continue leading the squad, grappling with the pressure, exhaustion, exposure, and other personal challenges. However, Scaloni revealed that after opening up to his inner circle about these struggles, he was able to overcome them and move forward.

“It’s useless to stay in a place where you can’t be yourself. I talked about this problems with the main actors: players, people from the Federation, my coaching staff, my family.. and the answer I received at that moment was ‘It’s ok, take your time’, and after some time I though that everyone could help me in this way, and I renew the energy I initially lost,” the coach admitted.

What did Scaloni said in El Maracana

After winning the 2021 Copa America, 2022 Finalissima and the 2022 World Cup, now Argentina won 1-0 to Brazil in his own house, El Maracana. However, in that 21st of November, the coach dropped some news that left some fans worried.

“Now it’s time for me to stop and think. These players gave us a lot to the coaching staff and I need to think what I’m going to do,” he said in the post match press conference. “This is not a goodbye, but I need some time because the bar is to high and I turns difficult to keep going, keep winning… This team needs a coach that has enough energy and be OK,” he ended.