{"id":15294,"date":"2026-06-25T14:33:48","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T09:03:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/?p=15294"},"modified":"2026-06-25T14:33:48","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T09:03:48","slug":"nico-paz-the-wildcard-messi-trusts-for-this-years-fifa-world-cup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/nico-paz-the-wildcard-messi-trusts-for-this-years-fifa-world-cup\/","title":{"rendered":"Nico Paz: The Wildcard Messi Trusts For This Years FIFA World Cup"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"bsf_rt_marker\"><\/div><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Como 1907 was founded 119 years ago. They had never played in the UEFA Champions League. Not once.<\/span><\/p><div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_86 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-black ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Page Contents:<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #282fff;color:#282fff\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #282fff;color:#282fff\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/nico-paz-the-wildcard-messi-trusts-for-this-years-fifa-world-cup\/#Educated_at_the_Best_School_in_Football\" >Educated at the Best School in Football<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/nico-paz-the-wildcard-messi-trusts-for-this-years-fifa-world-cup\/#How_Como_Gave_Him_Everything\" >How Como Gave Him Everything<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/nico-paz-the-wildcard-messi-trusts-for-this-years-fifa-world-cup\/#A_Milestone_Nobody_Has_Set_Before\" >A Milestone Nobody Has Set Before<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/nico-paz-the-wildcard-messi-trusts-for-this-years-fifa-world-cup\/#The_Name_to_Watch_Inside_the_Best_Squad_in_the_World\" >The Name to Watch Inside the Best Squad in the World<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2026, under the management of Cesc F\u00e0bregas and driven by the brilliance of one 21-year-old midfielder, they qualified for European football&#8217;s biggest stage for the first time in their entire existence. The 21-year-old was Nico Paz. And the 2026 FIFA World Cup is where the rest of the world catches up with what Serie A already knows.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><i>Follow Nico Paz and Argentina&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/teams.microsoft.com\/l\/message\/19:4565a8cf-5612-42d4-87e3-180e56d27b50_6209bf08-aa7b-4376-a8e5-0c3ba3de8f4e@unq.gbl.spaces\/1780993896337?context=%7B%22contextType%22%3A%22chat%22%7D\">2026 FIFA World Cup<\/a> campaign live in India \u2014 stream every match on ZEE5 with a <a href=\"https:\/\/teams.microsoft.com\/l\/message\/19:4565a8cf-5612-42d4-87e3-180e56d27b50_6209bf08-aa7b-4376-a8e5-0c3ba3de8f4e@unq.gbl.spaces\/1780993848090?context=%7B%22contextType%22%3A%22chat%22%7D\">ZEE5 FIFA subscription<\/a>.<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Educated_at_the_Best_School_in_Football\"><\/span><b>Educated at the Best School in Football<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nico Paz grew up in Spain. His development was shaped by Real Madrid&#8217;s academy and 49 appearances for Madrid Castilla under the legendary Ra\u00fal, where he scored 11 goals as a teenager before earning his first-team opportunity.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That opportunity arrived on November 8, 2023, when he walked onto the Santiago Bernab\u00e9u pitch against Braga in the Champions League in the 77th minute. Before that season was over, he was part of a squad that won La Liga, the Supercopa de Espa\u00f1a, and the UEFA Champions League. Three trophies before turning 20. Most players spend careers chasing one.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Como_Gave_Him_Everything\"><\/span><b>How Como Gave Him Everything<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In August 2024, Real Madrid sold Paz to Serie A side Como. Wearing the playmaker&#8217;s jersey, he became the central engine of Como&#8217;s attack \u2014 the player the team ran through, the one F\u00e0bregas trusted to control the tempo and create when it mattered most.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The numbers from 2025-26 are striking. Twelve goals and six assists across 35 appearances. Voted Serie A&#8217;s Best Midfielder for the season. His total contribution since arriving \u2014 18 goals in 70 appearances \u2014 is the record of a player who adapted immediately and kept improving.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Champions League qualification was the season&#8217;s crowning moment. Como, a club that had spent most of their existence outside the top flight \u2014 let alone European competition \u2014 earned their place in the Champions League for the very first time. It did not happen because of their budget or their infrastructure. It happened because a 21-year-old made the critical passes in the matches where the margin between qualifying and not was razor-thin. That is not a coincidence. That is a player performing at a level that changes outcomes.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"A_Milestone_Nobody_Has_Set_Before\"><\/span><b>A Milestone Nobody Has Set Before<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When Paz appears at the 2026 football World Cup, he will make history. He will become the first player in Argentina&#8217;s history to compete at a World Cup without ever having played for a domestic club or youth academy inside Argentina. Born and raised in Spain, developed at Real Madrid, starring in Italy \u2014 his path to the Albiceleste is unlike any that came before it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With 8 senior caps already earned, he has proved he belongs. His contribution to the qualifying campaign included setting up Lionel Messi in a 6-0 win over Bolivia on his senior international debut \u2014 the kind of moment that defines whether a player is trusted at this level. Messi wanted the ball from Paz. He found it.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Name_to_Watch_Inside_the_Best_Squad_in_the_World\"><\/span><b>The Name to Watch Inside the Best Squad in the World<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/sports\/football\/fifa-world-cup\/2026\/0-6-4z5974253\/0-2-5z5974716\/teams\/argentina\/argentina-squad\">Argentina<\/a> arrive in 2026 as reigning world champions, loaded with quality at every position. Within that squad, Paz is the wildcard \u2014 the player nobody outside Italy was watching two years ago, who now has Champions League medals, a Serie A individual award, and a direct line to Messi&#8217;s trust in qualifying.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He is 21, he plays in a squad with Messi and Emiliano Mart\u00ednez, and he has spent the last two years earning trust at every level he has been placed in \u2014 Champions League football with Real Madrid, Serie A&#8217;s best midfield award with Como, and a senior international debut that ended with an assist to the greatest player who ever lived. When Argentina take the field in Kansas City on June 17, he is the name to watch alongside the headline acts. His father, Pablo Paz, played for Argentina at the 1998 World Cup. Now, 28 years later, the son is here \u2014 and he earned this on his own terms.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Watch Nico Paz in action \u2014 Argentina vs Algeria is live on Zee5, June 17, 6:30 AM IST. Get ZEE5 access with the \u20b9799 Quarterly Plan or the \u20b91,699 Annual Plan.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Como 1907 was founded 119 years ago. They had never played in the UEFA Champions League. Not once. In 2026, under the management of Cesc F\u00e0bregas and driven by the brilliance of one 21-year-old midfielder, they qualified for European football&#8217;s biggest stage for the first time in their entire existence. The 21-year-old was Nico Paz. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":15163,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3019],"tags":[3047,3031,2892],"class_list":["post-15294","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fifa-world-cup-2026","tag-argentina-football-team","tag-fifa-world-cup-2026","tag-messi-world-cup-2026"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1132x400.png","author_info":{"display_name":"Sourav K","author_link":"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/author\/sourav-k\/"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Nico Paz: The Wildcard Messi Trusts For This Years FIFA World Cup - Zee 5 Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Nico Paz emerges as Argentina\u2019s wildcard at FIFA 2026\u2014trusted by Messi and ready to shine on the world stage.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.zee5.com\/global\/blog\/nico-paz-the-wildcard-messi-trusts-for-this-years-fifa-world-cup\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Nico Paz: The Wildcard Messi Trusts For This Years FIFA World Cup - 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