Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi, the joint-leading scorer in Italy this season, was a notable omission from Argentina’s 23-man World Cup squad named by coach Jorge Sampaoli on Monday.
Icardi scored his 29th Serie A goal of the season on Sunday as Inter pipped Lazio to a Champions League place, but he was one of 12 players cut from a provisional 35-man squad revealed last week.
The 25-year-old made his Argentina debut in October 2013 but spent four years in international exile before he was recalled last September for the final four World Cup qualifiers.
23-man squad:
Goalkeepers: Sergio Romero (Manchester United/ENG), Willy Caballero (Chelsea/ENG), Franco Armani (River Plate)
Defenders: Gabriel Mercado (Sevilla/ESP), Federico Fazio (Roma/ITA), Nicolas Otamendi (Manchester City/ENG), Marcos Rojo (Manchester United/ENG), Nicolas Taglafico (Ajax/NED), Javier Mascherano (Hebei Fortune/CHN), Marcos Acuna (Sporting Lisbon/POR), Cristian Ansaldi (Torino/ITA), Eduardo Salvio (Benfica/POR)
Midfielders: Ever Banega (Sevilla/ESP), Lucas Biglia (AC Milan/ITA), Angel Di Maria (Paris Saint-Germain/FRA), Giovani Lo Celso (Paris Saint-Germain/FRA), Manuel Lanzini (West Ham/ENG), Maximiliano Meza (Independiente)
Forwards: Lionel Messi (Barcelona/ESP), Gonzalo Higuain (Juventus/ITA), Paulo Dybala (Juventus/ITA), Sergio Aguero (Manchester City/ENG), Cristian Pavon (Boca Juniors)
