LIONEL Messi and his Argentina team mates will travel to India later this year to take on Venezuela in a friendly designed to boost football on the subcontinent.
The FIFA-sanctioned game is scheduled for September 2 in Kolkata and the Argentinian team will then travel to Bangladesh where they will take on Nigeria.
“The Argentina Football Association has indeed signed a contract to bring in the full-strength squad including Messi and Carlos Tevez among others,” Bhaskar Goswami of the Celebrity Management Group said.
“The contract guarantees their participation.”
The Argentina squad will arrive in Kolkata on August 30 and will take part in a number of events, including a charity programme and a football clinic for children during a four-day stay.
It was unclear if world player of the year Messi, whose club side Barcelona begin their La Liga title defence the day before, would fly out with his Argentina team mates or join the tour later.
After the Kolkata outing, the Argentine contingent will travel to Dhaka for another friendly against Nigeria on September 6, the report said.
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