THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Argentina national coach Diego Maradona confirmed Friday that Barcelona midfielder Lionel Messi will play the friendly match against France in Marseille on Feb. 11, but shied away from confirming the complete roster.
Maradona reached an agreement with Barcelona Coach Joseph (Pep) Guardiola allowing Messi to play during the friendly — his second match as national coach.
"Both of us completely agree that Messi should do his best for Barcelona and for the national team," Maradona said Friday in a televised press conference after returning from a European tour to review the form of players for the national team.
Maradona, often considered the greatest football player ever, began as national coach Nov. 19 in a 1-0 win against Scotland. Messi didn’t play the match because of an agreement between the Spanish Club and the Argentine football federation.
Messi should have received the FIFA World Player of Year, Maradona said, which went to Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo earlier this week.
But the football legend told Messi not to worry because he would win the award in the future.