The former Albiceleste forward, a World Cup winner in 1978, believes it would be a “catastrophe” if the Barcelona star missed next year's competition
Former Argentina striker Mario Kempes says the only people who would be happy to see Lionel Messi miss the World Cup are fans of Diego Maradona.
Argentina are in a precarious position heading into their final qualifying match against Ecuador in Quito on Tuesday, having drawn their last three games and scored only one goal in the process.
Jorge Sampaoli's side are sixth in the South American standings but a win over Ecuador would be enough to secure at least a play-off place, with Peru and Colombia, the two teams above them, playing each other.