Óscar Ruggeri commented on Lionel Messi's absence and shared his opinion on Marcelo Bielsa.

Former footballer and world champion Óscar Ruggeri reacted with surprise upon learning that Lionel Messi will not be on the roster for the Argentine national team's match against Uruguay in the South American Qualifiers. The "Cabezón" confessed that he expected the presence of the Albiceleste captain in this South American classic: "I thought he was going to be there." He clarified that he was not aware of the Rosario star's injury absence.

Meanwhile, although he acknowledged the difficulty of playing without Messi, he highlighted that Argentina has high-level players and mentioned that the absence of the number 10 brings relief to the opposing team: "If I'm changing in the other locker room and they tell me, no, Messi isn't going to play, I get quite happy."

In his exchange with the journalist from "El Espectador," Ruggeri also praised Uruguay's current state under Marcelo Bielsa's direction, whom he described as a top-level coach. "You guys hired an elite coach. Without a doubt, without a doubt, without a doubt. A very capable coach, a prepared coach, an obsessive coach, like we once had with Bilardo," assured the former defender.

On the other hand, he concluded by mentioning Federico Valverde's impact at Real Madrid: "Valverde is a great player. Don't even mention him to me because my grandson, on top of that, is in love with Valverde. I went, I took him, and, thank God, I went to see the training, and he treated us very well. He gave my grandson the jersey." "Notice that he's the captain of Real Madrid. Some people might not realize what it means to be the captain of Real Madrid. It's the most important team in the world. The best team of all for me," Ruggeri emphasized.