The central defender of the Argentine National Team, Nicolás Otamendi, turned 37 years old on February 12. In radio statements, the current defender of Benfica from Portugal revealed that no member of the coaching staff sent him a message to greet him, but he pointed out that he received congratulations from several teammates, including Lionel Messi.
"This time 'Leo' was second or third. Once a message was sent, he is always there. Look, I scored the last goal against Brazil. It's nice to play in the World Cup qualifiers, I like it. Rodrigo De Paul, Leandro Paredes, the whole group we have, and many guys from the National Team also congratulated me," Otamendi shared.
Jokingly, he mentioned that Lionel Scaloni and no member of the coaching staff greeted him, which generated a funny reaction: "Maybe they didn’t see it was my birthday, but, well, it's all good." He also highlighted the importance of receiving greetings on his day and expressed his gratitude for the gesture, recalling that he also greets his teammates on their birthdays.
On the other hand, the Argentine National Team is preparing to play in the upcoming double date of the South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. They will face Uruguay on March 21 as visitors and Brazil at home four days later. Otamendi expressed his enthusiasm for these challenges and the significance of these matches for the players: "Two nice duels are coming up, the ones we all want to play. Brazil brings back memories."
