If Argentina are to live up to the pre-tournament hype touting them as potential World Cup winners, then they must surely beat Mexico.
Lionel Scaloni's side found themselves on the wrong end of the one of the tournament's great upsets in their opener, losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia.
And only three points in their second outing will do if they are to silence early doubts regarding their hopes of lifting the trophy.
Below are the predicted lineups for both teams ahead of the clash at Lusail Stadium.
MORE: Argentina vs Mexico tips, best bets and predictions from TSN's experts
Argentina vs Mexico lineups
As they look to get their World Cup campaign back on track, Argentina have received a significant fitness boost over their talisman.
Despite early concerns over a leg injury, Messi is fully fit and starts against Mexico.
But good news on the physical front must be backed by an immediate mental recovery, of which coach Scaloni said: "When you are knocked out you have to get up, and my players are more than capable of doing so.
"We will not change the way we play because of the loss to Saudi Arabia. I can make a change or two in the selection but not in our system, that is not in question.
"This group will leave everything they've got on the pitch to recover from that heavy blow."
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Argentina starting 11
(4-3-3, right to left): 23. E. Martinez (GK) — 4. Montiel, 25. L. Martinez, 19. Otamendi, 8. Acuna — 7. De Paul, 18. Rodriguez, 20. Mac Allister — 10. Messi, 22. L. Martinez, 11. Di Maria
- Injured: none
- Suspended: none
Manchester United's Lisandro Martinez comes in for Cristian Romero, who has been short of fitness.
In midfield, Guido Rodriguez and Alexis Mac Allister start in place of Alejandro Gomez and Leandro Paredes. Gonzalo Montiel is another defensive change at right-back, with Nahuel Molina dropping out.
Mexico starting 11
(5-3-2, right to left): 13. Ochoa (GK) — 26. Kevin Alvarez, 2. Nestor Araujo, 3. Montes, 15. Moreno, 23. Gallardo — 16. Herrera, 18. Guardado, 24. Chavez — 22. Lozano, 10. Vega
- Injured: none
- Suspended: none
Martino's biggest call is to leave Raul Jimenez on the bench. Instead, Henry Martin drops out in a change of system, with Hirving Lozano and Alexis Vega starting in attack in a 5-3-2.
The big-game experience of Andres Guardado should help to bring some stability to the midfield, while Jorge Sanchez is on the bench as Kevin Alvarez starts on the right of the five-man defence.
Argentina vs Mexico World Cup squads
Here are the 26 names on each team's squad lists at the World Cup in Qatar:
Argentina
| Position | No. | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | 1 | Franco Armani | River Plate (ARG) | 36 | 18 |
| GK | 23 | Emiliano Martinez | Aston Villa (ENG) | 30 | 19 |
| GK | 12 | Geronimo Rulli | Villarreal (SPA) | 30 | 4 |
| DEF | 8 | Marcos Acuna | Sevilla (SPA) | 30 | 43 |
| DEF | 2 | Juan Foyth | Villarreal (SPA) | 24 | 16 |
| DEF | 25 | Lisandro Martinez | Man United (ENG) | 24 | 10 |
| DEF | 26 | Nahuel Molina | Atletico Madrid (SPA) | 24 | 19 |
| DEF | 4 | Gonzalo Montiel | Sevilla (SPA) | 25 | 19 |
| DEF | 19 | Nicolas Otamendi | Benfica (POR) | 34 | 93 |
| DEF | 6 | German Pezzella | Real Betis (SPA) | 31 | 32 |
| DEF | 13 | Cristian Romero | Tottenham (ENG) | 24 | 12 |
| DEF | 3 | Nicolas Tagliafico | Lyon (FRA) | 30 | 42 |
| MID | 7 | Rodrigo De Paul | Atletico Madrid (SPA) | 28 | 44 |
| MID | 24 | Enzo Fernandez | Benfica (POR) | 21 | 3 |
| MID | 17 | Alejandro 'Papu' Gomez | Sevilla (SPA) | 34 | 15 |
| MID | 20 | Alexis Mac Allister | Brighton (ENG) | 23 | 8 |
| MID | 14 | Exequiel Palacios | Bayer Leverkusen (GER) | 24 | 20 |
| MID | 5 | Leandro Paredes | Juventus (ITA) | 28 | 46 |
| MID | 18 | Guido Rodriguez | Real Betis (SPA) | 28 | 26 |
| FWD | 9 | Julian Alvarez | Man City (ENG) | 22 | 12 |
| FWD | 16 | Thiago Almada** | Atlanta United (USA) | 21 | 1 |
| FWD | 11 | Angel Di Maria | Juventus (ITA) | 34 | 124 |
| FWD | 21 | Paulo Dybala | AS Roma (ITA) | 28 | 34 |
| FWD | 15 | Angel Correa* | Atletico Madrid | 25 | 22 |
| FWD | 22 | Lautaro Martinez | Inter Milan (ITA) | 25 | 40 |
| FWD | 10 | Lionel Messi | PSG (FRA) | 35 | 165 |
*Replaced the injured Nicolas Gonzalez
**Replaced the injured Joaquin Correa
Mexico
| Position | No. | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | 12 | Rodolfo Cota | Club Leon (MEX) | 35 | 8 |
| GK | 13 | Guillermo Ochoa | Club America (MEX) | 37 | 132 |
| GK | 1 | Alfredo Talavera | FC Juarez (MEX) | 40 | 40 |
| DEF | 26 | Kevin Alvarez | Pachuca (MEX) | 23 | 8 |
| DEF | 2 | Nestor Araujo | Club America (MEX) | 31 | 63 |
| DEF | 6 | Gerardo Arteaga | Genk (BEL) | 24 | 17 |
| DEF | 23 | Jesus Gallardo | Monterrey (MEX) | 28 | 79 |
| DEF | 3 | Cesar Montes | Monterrey (MEX) | 25 | 31 |
| DEF | 15 | Hector Moreno | Monterrey (MEX) | 34 | 128 |
| DEF | 19 | Jorge Sanchez | Ajax (NED) | 24 | 26 |
| DEF | 4 | Johan Vasquez | Cremonese (ITA) | 23 | 7 |
| DEF | 4 | Edson Alvarez | Ajax (NED) | 24 | 59 |
| MID | 24 | Luis Chavez | Pachuca (MEX) | 26 | 9 |
| MID | 18 | Andres Guardado | Real Betis (SPA) | 36 | 180 |
| MID | 14 | Erick Gutierrez | PSV (NED) | 27 | 34 |
| MID | 16 | Hector Herrera | Houston Dynamo (USA) | 37 | 102 |
| MID | 8 | Carlos Rodriguez | Cruz Azul (MEX) | 25 | 37 |
| MID | 7 | Luis Romo | Monterrey (MEX) | 27 | 27 |
| FWD | 17 | Orbelin Pineda | AEK Athens (GRE) | 26 | 50 |
| FWD | 25 | Roberto Alvarado | Chivas (MEX) | 24 | 32 |
| FWD | 21 | Uriel Antuna | Cruz Azul (MEX) | 25 | 37 |
| FWD | 11 | Rogelio Funes Mori | Monterrey (MEX) | 31 | 16 |
| FWD | 9 | Raul Jimenez | Wolves (ENG) | 31 | 97 |
| FWD | 22 | Hirving Lozano | Napoli (ITA) | 27 | 60 |
| FWD | 20 | Henry Martin | Club America (MEX) | 29 | 27 |
| FWD | 10 | Alexis Vega | Chivas (MEX) | 24 | 23 |
