Argentina football team to play in Kerala next year

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 20: The Kerala government announced on Wednesday that the Argentina national football team, led by legendary player Lionel Messi, will visit the state next year for an international friendly match, which Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan hailed as a tribute to state people’s passion for soccer.
Addressing a press conference here, Sports Minister V Abdurahiman said that the world-renowned team would play two friendly matches in Kerala, with the event being conducted under the complete supervision of the state government.
The venue and the opponent team would be decided at a later stage, Abdurahiman said, reacting to a query.
“The world’s number one football team, Argentina, including Lionel Messi, is coming to Kerala… There will be two matches,” he said.The management of the Argentina team would make an official announcement in this regard upon arriving in the state, Abdurahiman said.Representatives of the football team are expected to visit the southern state within one and a half months, the minister said.
“We (government) have decided to make a joint announcement in this regard with the Argentina national team management,” he said.The minister said that he had recently visited Spain to hold discussions with representatives of the Argentina national team and to extend an official invitation for their visit to the state. (PTI)