Bad coaches have been almost a permanent fixture in Messi's NT career. Some that pretty much singlehandedly brought Argentina down in tournaments (Maradona) while plenty of other shit ones like Tata and Bauza. Sabella, who never seemed to be more than an OK conservative coach, brought out Messi's best spell of form with the NT. This might finally be a big change.
To put it plainly, Sampaoli will have his work cut out for him. Argentina's squad are not stronger now than in previous years. He'll have to deal with an even older and declining Masche in the WC next year and Messi himself will be around 31 at that time (!!!). The others like Higuain, Aguero, and Di Maria haven't ever been that reliable but they too are not getting younger. Aguero and especially Mascherano could potentially not be starters at the club level next season leading into the WC. Another key issue is other NT's having much deeper and younger squads (France, Germany, Brazil, Spain, etc.) all of whom have shown themselves as potential champions. Dybala is a very bright spot and Argentina must hope that he keeps fit and in form over the next year, he is an intelligent player that could finally give good support to Messi going forward.
What other Argentine players could/should be included in the squad or played more? I'm not Icardi's biggest fan but if he can prove to be a reliable finisher in important situations then Higuain should 100% be tossed. Rulli is another option, he's always seemed like a talented keeper in La Liga.
