“I’ve only seen him in video games” - Brazil star excited to play against Lionel Messi as he prepares for World Cup qualifiers 

Arsenal's Gabriel Martinelli is excited to face Lionel Messi for the first time in his career as Argentina prepare to meet Brazil in the 2026 FIFA World Cup CONMEBOL qualifiers.

Martinelli has been at Arsenal since signing from Ituano in the summer of 2019. He has also made eight senior appearances for Brazil's senior team. But during that time, he has never come face-to-face with Messi — one of football's greatest-ever players.

Sharing the same pitch as the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner would be on many professional footballers' bucket list, and Martinelli doesn't seem to be any different. Speaking ahead of Brazil's game against Argentina on 21 November at the Maracana, the Arsenal forward said (h/t GOAL):

"About Messi... he is a phenomenal player, the best in the world this year again. I want to enjoy the moment of being able to play against him, being able to be in the same stadium as him, watching him up close, because I've only seen him in video games. It's going to be a wonderful experience."

Martinelli, 22, has had a mixed time for Arsenal this season, scoring twice and providing three assists in 14 matches across competitions. He did, however, score his first goal for the Selecao, doing so in a 2-1 World Cup qualifiers loss against Colombia on 17 November.

Lionel Messi was also in action for his country last week. The 36-year-old played the full 90 minutes as Uruguay beat them 2-0 in the qualifiers, with goals from Ronald Araujo and Darwin Nunez.

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Lionel Messi's Argentina still top despite Uruguay loss

The 2-0 loss against Uruguay in front of the home fans at La Bombonera would have undoubtedly been an unpleasant experience for Argentina.

However, Lionel Scaloni's men still sit atop the points table after five matches in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. They have 12 points from four matches, with wins against Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Peru.

Lionel Messi contributed directly in two of those wins, scoring both goals in the 2-0 win against Peru and the solitary goal in the opener against Ecuador. Fans will expect to see him lead his team out when La Albiceleste face Brazil later this week.

After the 2-1 loss against Colombia, where Luis Diaz scored two late goals, Brazil sit fifth in the table with seven points from five games.