Defender Marcos Senesi has been named to Argentina's 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, replacing Leonardo Balerdi who suffered a right calf soleus muscle injury [1, 2, 3, 4]. The Argentina Football Association confirmed Senesi's call-up today, June 11, after Balerdi was dropped from the team due to the injury sustained on June 6 [1, 3, 4]. "Marcos Senesi joins the Argentina squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup," the association said [1].
Senesi, 29, recently completed a free transfer to Tottenham Hotspur after his contract with Bournemouth expired [1, 2, 3, 4]. He was a key player at Bournemouth last season, missing only one Premier League game and helping them finish sixth to qualify for European competitions for the first time [1, 2, 3].
The defender has earned three international caps for Argentina so far, choosing to represent his birth country over Italy [1, 3, 4]. He played the full 90 minutes in a 1-0 win over Venezuela in October 2025 and appeared against Mauritania in March 2026 [4].
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni evaluated the squad during a pre-World Cup friendly against Iceland on June 9. "Today's test left me satisfied and cleared up many doubts regarding what the team might be lacking ... Maybe I'll take one or two more days to announce Balerdi's replacement," Scaloni said before the official call-up [4].
Senesi will join Argentina's World Cup base in Kansas City, Missouri, ahead of their first Group J match on June 16 against Algeria [4]. Argentina's group also includes Austria and Jordan [1, 2, 3, 4].
The 26-man Argentina squad now moves forward with Senesi bolstering the defensive options in the tournament opener against Algeria on June 16 [1, 2, 3, 4].
