Five players to watch in the Algeria-Argentina match in KC (other than Messi)
The presence of past World Cup champions at Kansas City Stadium (aka Arrowhead) for Tuesday’s match between Argentina and Algeria was already expected.
With Argentina being the defending champions, we new there would be some ex-champs on the pitch. That includes Lionel Messi, who is arguably the best soccer player ever. But a champion from France’s 1998 team is expected to be on hand, too, but as a spectator.
It’s Zinedine Zidane. That’s because his son is one of the five players not named Messi that Kansas City fans will want to keep an eye on during Tuesday’s match.
When Algeria shocked the Netherlands with a 1-0 win in Rotterdam earlier this month, Luca Zidane’s clean sheet was a key factor in the victory. He was mostly a reserve for Real Madrid early in his career but was on Algeria’s 2025 Africa Cup of Nations squad. If Algeria is to pull an upset, a big game will be needed from Zidane, who appears to be fully recovered from a broken jaw.
Another player who is hoping to win a second straight World Cup title for Argentina is forward Lautaro Martínez. A star for Inter Milan, Martínez has scored 37 goals for his country, the fourth-most in Argentina history. He scored four goals in qualifying and found the back of the net against Honduras in a warm-up match earlier this month.
Not only was forward Mohamed Amoura the top scorer for Algeria during World Cup qualifying, but he had more goals than anyone in Africa. Amoura plays in Germany’s Bundesliga and will be one of the Desert Foxes’ most dangerous threats Tuesday night.
At every open training session at the Compass Minerals National Performance Center, all eyes were on Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez. He fractured a ring finger and at times seemed to be in quite a bit of pain. But Martínez is expected to start, and Argentina wouldn’t have won the last World Cup were it not for his stunning save in extra time of the title game against France.
The most famous Algerian player is winger Riyad Mahrez, who scored 43 goals in five seasons for Manchester City. Mahrez was part of the team that won a treble in 2022-23. Now 35 years old, there is a good chance Mahrez, who will wear the captain’s arm band, won’t play the full 90, but he could have some magic left.
