Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni stresses his side are not fixated on Lionel Messi alone as Argentina prepare for a last-32 World Cup tie against Cape Verde, with the defending champions arriving in the knockouts after three group wins, eight goals scored, one conceded, and a growing sense that every error in the tournament now becomes decisive.

Messi still dominates headlines after scoring six of Argentina’s eight group-stage goals, despite starting on the bench in the victory against Jordan, and the captain now shares the Golden Boot lead with Kylian Mbappe, who has already played one extra match, while also chasing personal milestones in appearances and goal involvements at the tournament.

Scaloni underlines that Argentina’s attack must stay varied, even with Messi in prolific form, and points out that the squad carries several options in forward areas. “Of course, everything he does is more visible, but there is one more striker in the team,” Scaloni said of Messi. “We do create chances, and Leo Messi, apart from being a great player, he’s a striker. Whether he plays with Julian [Alvarez] or Lautaro [Martinez], we will try for all of them to score just as anyone else.”

Asked to explain how many minutes Messi might play against Cape Verde, Scaloni refuses to give a fixed answer and links the decision to match context and fitness. “I don’t think it really makes sense to reply to this now. I don’t know how the match is going to be, how he’s going to be feeling,” he said. “He’s been playing very well. I hope that everything will go well, but it will depend on how the match goes and how he feels.”

This meeting with Cape Verde is historic, as the teams have never faced each other before, and the African side arrive as World Cup debutants, ranked 63rd by FIFA at the start of the tournament, yet finishing second in Group H behind Spain and ahead of Uruguay after drawing all three matches and showing strong defensive discipline throughout.

Cape Verde’s progress carries wider significance for the tournament’s history, with the team becoming the first debuting nation to reach the World Cup knockout phase since Slovakia in 2010, and also the first African debutants to get out of their group since Ghana advanced in 2006, while also being the smallest country ever to progress beyond the group stage.

Argentina’s own numbers highlight why Scaloni’s side enter as favourites, with a perfect group record of three wins from three, eight goals scored, and only one conceded, while Messi has been involved in nine goals across the last five World Cup knockout appearances, registering five goals and four assists, and scoring in four straight knockout matches for Argentina.

If Messi plays against Cape Verde, the match is set to mark another landmark, as the Argentina captain will become the first footballer to reach at least 30 World Cup appearances, and this last-32 fixture is on course to be Messi’s 13th outing in the tournament’s knockout phase, underlining the length and consistency of his career at this level.

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Scaloni and the Argentina staff have already studied Cape Verde closely and do not treat this tie as routine, stressing that the knockout phase leaves no space for error. “We’re in a good moment, but now the margins are very small. This is a match where if you lose, you’re out. We know that,” Scaloni said. “They’re a good team. We’ve already watched them, not just because we are playing against them, but because we were analysing potential opponents and then they qualified. We are not surprised, to be honest. They are a good team, and they are not here by chance. We must respect them, and that’s what we will do.”

Scaloni highlights specific strengths in Cape Verde’s World Cup campaign so far, pointing to both defensive organisation and threat on transitions as areas Argentina must handle well. “Against Saudi Arabia, they deserved to win. Against Spain and Uruguay, maybe they suffered a bit more, but they defended well. They also closed down the inside channels, and they are really good on the counter-attack. They have skilled players.”

Argentina now approach the last-32 contest against Cape Verde with confidence from a dominant group stage, yet also with awareness of the fine margins in knockout football, reliance on Messi’s form balanced by Scaloni’s emphasis on collective responsibility, and clear respect for a Cape Verde team that has already defied rankings and tournament history.