Argentina beats Bolivia 4-0 in its first match since Lionel Messi's international retirement

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(), D. R. (2026, October 1). Argentina beats Bolivia 4-0 in its first match since Lionel Messi's international retirement. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/sports/soccer/argentina-beats-bolivia-4-0-in-its-first-match-since-lionel-messi-s-international-retirement/article_4845f993-23ba-5329-b605-40e6b8efa51c.html

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Toronto Star · collected 2026-10-01 · by Débora Rey ()

Quick Summary

Argentina defeated Bolivia 4-0 in a match held in Córdoba, with goals scored by Lautaro Martínez, Nicolás Paz, Cristian Romero, and José Manuel “Flaco” López. This was Argentina’s first game since Lionel Messi announced his retirement from international football, though he will return for one last farewell match against Benin next Tuesday.

Written by AI on 2026-10-01, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On Wednesday, Argentina faced its first match since Lionel Messi's international retirement, hosting Bolivia in a 4-0 victory at Kempes Stadium in Córdoba. With Messi stepping away from the national team at age 39, Argentina experimented with new formations and players ahead of his final farewell match against Benin next Tuesday in Buenos Aires. Coach Lionel Scaloni, who is tasked with finding a way to play differently without Messi, fielded strikers Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez together up front for the first time. The goals were scored by Lautaro Martínez, Nicolás Paz, Cristian Romero, and José Manuel “Flaco” López. This match marked Argentina's return to action after losing to Spain in extra time during the World Cup final.

Written for “Argentina Post” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Argentina Post

Sports · 2 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

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This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

Argentina's post-Messi era begins against Bolivia, coach discusses future of No. 10 jersey Same event

Toronto Star

Hedges 1 of 28 claims Outlet record 64/100

Lionel Messi to join Argentina for farewell match against Benin Different event

Al Jazeera

Hedges 1 of 27 claims Outlet record 60/100

“The articles describe different matches: one against Bolivia with a score of 4-0 and another planned against Benin as Lionel Messi's final appearance.”

Lionel Messi to wear special Argentina shirt for final game Different event

Evening Standard

Hedges 1 of 10 claims Outlet record 64/100

“The articles describe different matches; one is about Argentina's match against Bolivia on October 1st, and the other is about Messi's final game against Benin on October 6th.”

Where to watch Argentina vs Benin: TV channel and live stream for Lionel Messi's last international match Different event

Evening Standard

Hedges 0 of 11 claims Outlet record 64/100

“The articles describe different matches; one is against Bolivia and the other is against Benin.”

When is Lionel Messi's final Argentina game and who are the opponents? Different event

Evening Standard

Hedges 1 of 20 claims Outlet record 64/100

“Article A describes Argentina's match against Bolivia on October 1st with a score of 4-0, while Article B refers to Messi's final game for Argentina which is scheduled for October 7th at the Monumental Stadium.”

Messi set for emotional Argentina farewell in Buenos Aires friendly vs Benin Different event

Toronto Star

Hedges 1 of 23 claims Outlet record 64/100

“The articles describe different matches: one against Bolivia with a score of 4-0, and another supposed friendly against Benin in Buenos Aires for Messi's farewell.”

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64/100

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Toronto Star · 11187 article(s) · 28 correction(s) detected

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Who wrote this

Débora Rey ()

3 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

🔮 Lautaro Martínez opened the scoring in the 19th minute, Nicolás Paz doubled the lead in the 29th, Cristian Romero added a scored in the 54th and José Manuel “Flaco” López sealed the win in the 86th. It was a reassuring performance for the Albiceleste, who were returning to action for the first time since their World Cup final defeat to Spain in extra time. The 39-year-old Messi stepped away from international duty last month, but he will don the iconic No. 10 jersey one last time next Tuesday in a farewell match against Benin in Buenos Aires.

2026-10-01 · assertive framing · Argentina beats Bolivia 4-0 in its first match since Lionel Messi's international retirement

🔮 With the iconic No. 10 jersey unassigned, Argentina will face its first test of the post- Lionel Messi era when it hosts Bolivia in a friendly on Wednesday.

2026-09-29 · assertive framing · Argentina's post-Messi era begins against Bolivia, coach discusses future of No. 10 jersey

🔮 Lionel Scaloni, who hinted his tenure as Argentina coach was over following the loss in the World Cup final, said Thursday he is willing to negotiate an extension of his contract, which expires in December. “We will talk — there is every willingness to sit down,” Scaloni told reporters after a training session at the national team complex in Ezeiza, ahead of friendlies against Bolivia, Burkina Faso, and Benin. “There is certainly a desire to be here, but there are a lot of aspects we need to discuss with the president” of the Argentine Football Association, Claudio Tapia. Scaloni’s remarks came after several Argentine national team players publicly called for him to stay, including the new captain, Cristian Romero, who is taking over the armband following the international retirement of Lionel Messi.

2026-09-24 · assertive framing · Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni opens door to contract extension and preps for Messi farewell

Also by Débora Rey ()

Argentina's post-Messi era begins against Bolivia, coach discusses future of No. 10 jersey

2026-09-29 · Toronto Star

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni opens door to contract extension and preps for Messi farewell

2026-09-24 · Toronto Star

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

Topics

Albiceleste Argentina Bolivia CÓRDOBA World Cup

Subjects

Argentina GPE · 4× Messi PERSON · 4× Albiceleste ORG · 1× Bolivia GPE · 1× Cristian Romero PERSON · 1× CÓRDOBA GPE · 1× José Manuel “Flaco” López PERSON · 1× Lautaro Martínez PERSON · 1× Lionel Messi PERSON · 1× Nicolás Paz PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Lautaro Martínez opened the scoring in the 19th minute, Nicolás Paz doubled the lead in the 29th, Cristian Romero added a scored in the 54th and José Manuel “Flaco” López sealed the win in the 86th. It was a reassuring performance for the Albiceleste, who were returning to action for the first time since their World Cup final defeat to Spain in extra time. The 39-year-old Messi stepped away from international duty last month, but he will don the iconic No. 10 jersey one last time next Tuesday in a farewell match against Benin in Buenos Aires.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-01

2026-10-01 · Toronto Star

Argentina beats Bolivia 4-0 in its first match since Lionel Messi's international retirement · assertive framing

Claims (5 extracted, 0 hedged)

Two goals in each half gave Argentina a comfortable 4–0 victory over Bolivia on Wednesday in the team’s first match since Lionel Messi announced his international retirement. asserted

Messi → give → retirement

he → open → Aires

Messi played 207 games for Argentina and is its all-time leading scorer with 125 goals, 21 of them in World Cups. asserted

Messi → play → Cups

In Messi’s absence, “Cuti” Romero captained the side. asserted

Romero → captain → side

Before Messi’s final send-off, Argentina will host another friendly against Burkina Faso on Saturday. asserted

Argentina → host → Saturday

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