Dybala and Molina will miss Messi's farewell
Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina will not be at Lionel Messi's Argentina farewell against Benin. Roma said so on 29 September. The match is on Tuesday 6 October 2026 at the Más Monumental, kick-off 20:00 in Buenos Aires, 23:00 UTC. Neither man was going to start. This note is about the guest list, not the team sheet.
| Match | Argentina vs Benin |
|---|---|
| Date | Tuesday, 6 October 2026 |
| Kick-off | 20:00 Argentina time (23:00 UTC) |
| Ground | Estadio Más Monumental, Buenos Aires |
| Not travelling | Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina |
| Reason given | The length of the trip and Roma's own fixtures |
What Roma said
Roma's statement is plain. Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina will not take part in the event organised in Argentina for the match against Benin on 6 October. The club said it understands why the invitation matters. Both men were part of the 2022 World Cup squad that won the tournament with Messi. The reason they are staying is sporting and logistical: an intercontinental trip, and official club matches close to that week. Roma added its respect for Messi and for the night the Argentine federation has planned.
Read that as a club keeping two players in Italy. Do not read it as a selection argument with Lionel Scaloni. Roma did not say either man had been picked to play. It said they would not attend the event.
Two absences that are not the same
Molina was already out of the playing squad. After the World Cup final he was given a seven-match suspension. He is not on the friendly list used for this window. The Roma note adds a second fact. He will not be in the stands for the tribute either. The ban explains the team sheet. The club explains the flight. They are different sentences, and both are true.
Dybala's case is the other way round. He was not called into the 27 September squad for Bolivia, Burkina Faso or Benin. The invitation he is missing is the one Claudio Tapia extended to the 2022 winners and their families, to be there while Messi plays. Missing that invitation does not remove a starter. He was never in the Benin group. Leandro Paredes is a third name people will attach to this story, and he does not belong in Roma's sentence. Paredes is serving a 10-game ban and is not on the friendly list. Roma did not mention him.
The place for those squad facts is the Argentina team news page. Enzo Fernández, for example, was described as missing Bolivia only and available for Benin. That has nothing to do with who stays in Rome.
Why the date was not going to move
Roma's problem is the calendar, and the calendar was already fixed. Argentina play Bolivia on 30 September in Córdoba, Burkina Faso on 3 October at the Monumental, and Benin on 6 October at the same ground. Messi was called only for the last one. On 25 September Scaloni said he had pushed for the farewell to happen in this window. His own contract runs to the end of the year, and he said he did not know if he would still be the coach later. He wanted to be on the touchline for the goodbye. That is why the match sits on a Tuesday in the first week of October, not on a date a European club would find comfortable.
A club in the middle of its season can decline a midweek flight to Buenos Aires without insulting the occasion. Roma's wording tried to do exactly that. The night still happens. Two invited guests do not.
Who the night is still for
The match is still Messi's. AFA framed the Benin friendly as the send-off, and he accepted. The 2022 squad were invited. Ángel Di María has been named among those expected to attend with family. A full list of who is actually on a plane has not been published, so this page will not invent one. Some of that group will be in the city. Dybala and Molina will not.
The players who can be on the pitch are the ones in the Benin squad, not the guest list. De Paul, Lo Celso and Otamendi were held for this match with Messi. Whether they start or appear for part of the night is still Scaloni's call on the day. A missing guest does not promote a youngster and does not demote a senior. The number 10 is a separate decision: Messi wears it against Benin, nobody wears it in the two games before, and the next owner is not chosen.
What this does not change
It does not reopen the ticket sale. The allocation for Benin went on 25 September. Dybala and Molina were invited guests, not two seats that automatically return to the public. If a return appears, it will show on the official ticket channel, not because a club in Italy issued a statement. The ground still holds 85,018, and the night was planned as a full house.
It does not move the kick-off. It does not move the ground. It does not put Molina back in the team if someone misreads "he is not travelling" as "his ban was lifted". The ban is still the reason he is off the list. It does not mean the homage has been trimmed down to a normal friendly. The tributes were organised around Messi. Two empty places in the guest group do not cancel a presentation.
For the Messi farewell itself, the useful questions are still the old ones. Is he in the squad? Yes, for Benin only. Will he start? That is the expectation, and the minutes are not confirmed. Who stands next to him from the 2022 side depends on who gets to Buenos Aires. Dybala and Molina are two names that can be crossed off that list.
Questions people ask
Will Paulo Dybala be at Argentina vs Benin?
No. Roma said on 29 September that he will not travel for the 6 October event.
Will Nahuel Molina play against Benin?
No. He is serving a seven-match ban and is not on the friendly squad. Roma also said he will not attend the homage.
Does this change Argentina's team?
No. Dybala was not in the Benin squad. Molina was already unavailable. The absence is from the guest list, not from the starting XI.
Where is the farewell being played?
Estadio Más Monumental, Buenos Aires, on 6 October 2026. Kick-off is 20:00 local time, 23:00 UTC.
Conclusion
Paulo Dybala and Nahuel Molina will not be at Argentina vs Benin. Roma said the trip and the club fixtures are the reason. Molina was already suspended and out of the squad. Dybala was invited as a 2022 winner, not selected to play. The farewell is still on 6 October at the Más Monumental, at 20:00, with Messi in the number 10. The guest list is shorter. The match is not.
Read also: When Lionel Messi will link up with Argentina for Benin