Police quash rumor of public access as Argentina opens Kansas City practice

*Argentina national team star Lionel Messi trained apart from the team at the open practice, working on mobility and speed, as he recovers from a hamstring injury.*

Kansas City, Kansas police put out a public notice ahead of Argentina’s first open practice, warning that the session was for media only and putting to rest a rumor that fans could attend. The advisory set the tone for a tightly guarded Wednesday, Jun. 3, at Sporting Kansas City’s training facility, where the defending World Cup champion let about 100 journalists in for over nearly 45 minutes and kept everyone else out.

It was the team’s third workout since landing Sunday, May 31, and the first it opened to cameras after two days behind closed doors. Half the journalists on hand were local; the rest attended at Argentina’s invitation, and many made their home nation impossible to miss.

A camp under guard

The security around the session matched the message. A marksman was posted on the roof of the complex, and a helicopter circled overhead through most of the time that reporters were allowed on site. Six KCK police cars lined the drive to the training facility, an officer accompanied the press bus to the gate, and more officers held positions around the grounds, including some beyond the perimeter fencing. The practice fields sit within sight of Parallel Parkway and the Fairfield Inn next door, but heavy screening keeps onlookers from getting a clear view.

Sporting Kansas City president and CEO Jake Reid pointed to the sky to make his case. “We got a helicopter that’s been flying over since they got here, so I think that should tell you that this is a big deal, right?” Reid said. “I think for the city to have Argentina here, and we’re not even talking about the other teams that are going to be here in the next couple of weeks, but it’s a massive deal.”

Messi works to the side

Lionel Messi, 38, sat out the full-team work and the scrimmage. He spent the session apart from the group, running through his own program with a trainer as he recovers from left-hamstring muscle fatigue, a problem he developed in Inter Miami’s most recent match and has managed since May 24. He showed no evident limitations, moving quickly and confidently, suggesting he will be available at least on a limited basis when Argentina opens its title defense against Algeria on Tuesday, Jun. 16.

Messi was not the only one working apart. Goalkeeper Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez, who is nursing a hand injury, worked through the drills but still looked hampered. Nico Paz, Leandro Paredes, Nico González, Thiago Almada, Gonzalo Montiel, and Nahuel Molina kept to their own programs as well, each managing a fitness issue.

Argentina’s Football Association struck an optimistic note about the group. It said, “The players who are suffering from niggles and injuries continue to work with the physiotherapy team on specific exercises on the pitch and are making good progress.”

Manager Lionel Scaloni drew better news elsewhere on the roster. Defender Cristian “Cuti” Romero, now past the sprained ligament in his right knee, and forward Julián Álvarez, over the ankle sprain that had kept him out since May 5, both got through an earlier session once doctors cleared them.

The sky over the training facility perfectly mirrored the team colors of the Argentina nation team.

A taste of Argentina

Scaloni’s voice carried encouragement across the pitch as he pushed his players through a drill that used stand-in defenders, quick close-range passing, and finishes at a miniature goal.

Many of the visiting journalists turned up in the national team’s sky blue and white, while others pulled on shirts printed with Messi’s face. One man broadcasting from the sideline recited the Lord’s Prayer for his audience, asking that the players stay healthy, and reporting crews sent live shots home to Argentina throughout.

A visiting Argentinian broadcaster asked her photographer colleague what he thought of Kansas City so far. “Tranquillo,” he said. “Muy tranquillo,” she agreed.

The session even brought out Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, who crossed from Missouri to take it in. Roughly four years on from Kansas City’s selection as a host city, even a low-key workout carried weight, and Lucas was far from the only one who treated it that way.

Reid framed the stakes plainly. “You’re talking about the most globally recognized player, the best player to ever lace it up, the defending champs for this tournament, and they’re training here in our backyard in Kansas City,” he said. “And I think that’s a phenomenal testament to both states, both cities and a lot of people to put a lot of work into this.”

*Sporting Kansas City team owner Cliff Illig looked over the practice from the observation balcony at the Compass Minerals National Training Center.*

What comes next

Argentina has two warm-up friendlies left before the tournament. The team faces Honduras on Saturday, Jun. 6, in College Station, Tex., then closes its preparations against Iceland on Tuesday, Jun. 9, in Auburn, Ala.

The World Cup opener follows against Algeria at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Jun. 16, at Kansas City Stadium, the renamed Arrowhead Stadium. Argentina then meets Austria on Jun. 22 and Jordan on Jun. 27, both in Arlington, Tex. England and the Netherlands are among the squads still set to reach the metro.