Argentina captain Lionel Messi returned to the field for the first time in 16 days after suffering from muscle overload in his left hamstring, coming off the bench to score in a friendly against Iceland on Tuesday night.
His return helped cement Argentina's 3-0 win over Iceland and was a treat to the partisan crowd of 88,044 at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama, on hand to see the defending world champions and Messi ahead of the start of the World Cup.
Messi entered as a substitute in the second half to replace Giuliano Simeone, earning his first minutes since exiting the game against Philadelphia Union on May 24 with muscle discomfort. The Argentina captain converted a penalty in the 72nd minute to reach 117 goals for Argentina and become the oldest goalscorer in the history of La Albiceleste.
Argentina will now prepare for the first game of their title defense at the World Cup on June 16 against Algeria.
"All that other stuff is behind us now; they'll judge us by what we do in this World Cup. We want to compete, arrive on the first day and leave on the last," said Messi's Inter Miami and Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul.
"Argentina is always a contender; people always get their hopes up. When I was a kid, the dream was always that we'd do really well.
"We're going to give everything we've got and a little bit more to bring [fans] that joy in order to see that union again like in Qatar. I'd like to see all the Argentinians united at the Obelisk again like that time. We're going to try it again."
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni, however, said the players must take the tournament one game at a time and think of factors beyond being crowned champions.
"We can't just think about being champions, we have to encourage, be there, and make the people feel identified with this team," Scaloni said. "The World Cup isn't won just by the team that plays the best, there are many factors that have to help you."
Still, Scaloni enters the World Cup content following the two pre-World Cup friendlies against Honduras and Iceland -- and with his star player seemingly ready to go.
"Today's test left me satisfied and cleared up many doubts regarding what the team might be lacking," Scaloni added. "We were worried at one point, but today we're much more at ease seeing how the boys responded."
Argentina will play in Group J, facing Algeria, Austria and Jordan in an attempt to defend their 2022 World Cup title.