Argentina Rout Burkina Faso 7-0 at the Monumental as Visitors' Young Squad Arrives Hours Before Kickoff
BUENOS AIRES - Argentina thrashed Burkina Faso 7-0 in an international friendly at the Monumental Stadium on October 4, racing to a 5-0 half-time lead. It was the team's second warm-up of the window ahead of Lionel Messi's farewell match, following an earlier 4-0 win over Bolivia.
The scoring ran one way: Lautaro Martinez converted a rebound after his fourth-minute penalty was saved, an own goal by Diallo followed, and Gianluca Prestianni, Nico Paz and Julian Alvarez made it five before the break. Franco Mastantuono and Giuliano Simeone added second-half goals. Martinez's strike was his 42nd for Argentina, moving him past Sergio Aguero into sole third place on the national scoring list behind Gabriel Batistuta and Messi. Prestianni, Paz and Mastantuono all scored their first senior international goals.
The lopsided night had an unusual backdrop. Burkina Faso's original charter flight was cancelled over a technical problem, several senior players declined to travel citing fatigue, and the squad that reached Buenos Aires - largely an under-23 selection - landed only hours before kickoff. Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni thanked the young visitors for making the trip and said his side had treated the match like a final.
The result equalled Argentina's biggest win under Scaloni. The team next faces Benin at the same stadium on October 6, in what will be captain Messi's farewell appearance for the national team.
Sources: Compiled from the ESPN match report carried by Headlines Briefing and reports by OneFootball, Foot Africa and AllFootball on October 4, 2026.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 布宜诺斯艾利斯纪念碑球场航拍，Py4nf 摄，CC BY 4.0（Wikimedia Commons）
