Ahead of his fifth and, reportedly, final World Cup, Messi discussed his contenders for the 2022 tournament with Latin American subscription channel DIRECTV Sports on Wednesday (AEDT).
The Argentina captain picked his two clear favourites for the title in Qatar, before mentioning Germany, England and Spain as hopefuls.
"We always say the same great teams... but, if I have to choose, Brazil and France are the two great candidates to win the World Cup," Messi told DIRECTV Sports.
"They've had the same group [of players] for a long time, working well. France, aside from the last Euros when they were eliminated [in the last 16] and did badly, they have some impressive players.
"They have a clear idea and the same coach [Didier Deschamps]. Brazil is a bit the same [under Tite]."
Messi's prediction comes in the midst of a horror lead-up to this year's tournament for defending champions France, who have been faced with a nightmare injury list consisting of N'Golo Kante, Paul Pogba and Raphael Varane among others.
The French have also been forced to confront Kylian Mbappe’s feud with the French Football Federation (FFF) over image rights, allegations of inappropriate workplace behaviour from the president of the governing body and an ongoing investigation into an alleged extortion attempt on Pogba from March.
However, the familiarity with Deschamps' tactical set-up, who has coached the national team since 2012, as well as the recent returns of captain Hugo Lloris, Adrien Rabiot, Kingsley Coman and Ballon d'or winner Karim Benzema at club level could help steady the French side ahead of their tournament opener against the Socceroos on November 23 (AEDT).
Meanwhile, Argentina's CONMEBOL affiliates Brazil have garnered only one loss from their past 29 matches, which came against Messi's side in the 2021 Copa America decider, but managed to beat out their arch-rivals in qualifying after succumbing to only three draws compared to six from their respective undefeated campaigns.
The longevity of Tite's six-year tenure at the helm has seen the young talents of Vinicius Junior, Gabriel Jesus and Richarlison flourish in attack, in addition to the invaluable experience of gloveman Alisson Becker, Paris Saint-Germain duo Marquinhos and Neymar, captain Thiago Silva and fellow Premier League stars Casemiro and Fabinho in midfield, among others.
Squad upheaval
Since his appointment after the post-Russia 2018 dismissal of Jorge Sampaoli, Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni has guided the world's number three-ranked side to the longest active undefeated streak and the second longest in international football history, going unbeaten in 35 games behind Italy's all-time record of 37, which ran between October 2018 and October 2021.
However, Messi's claim of France and Brazil retaining the same group of players for a long period of time has not been the case for Argentina. In addition to the managerial change occurring shortly after their round of 16 exit from Russia, the South American side have undergone significant changes to their squad with some resulting from international retirement, including six of the 11 who lined up in their historic 3-0 loss to eventual finalists Croatia in the group stage.
Although the young talents of Manchester United defender Lisandro Martínez and attackers Julián Álvarez from Manchester City and Inter Milan's Lautaro Martínez have blossomed since the 2018 tournament, the recent injuries of squad mainstays Paulo Dybala and Angel di Maria amidst a congested October club schedule have proven to be of particular concern for Scaloni ahead of the 2022 tournament start in under a month's time.
"We are in quite a difficult stage. The players are playing a lot of games," Scaloni told AFAestudio.
"There can be problems as there are injuries [and] suspensions. It's part of being an elite player and a national team player.
"I worry, but there is little you can do. I believe that the player has to go out on the pitch to play and not think about what's coming -- it can be detrimental. Let them play naturally."
Challenges at Qatar 2022
The South Americans will open their campaign in Qatar against Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, November 22 (AEDT).
Despite entering the tournament as the second-lowest ranked team ahead of Ghana, Herve Renard's side could pose a potential stumbling block to their more highly fancied opponents in Argentina, Mexico and Poland amid their group-topping effort in the third round of AFC qualifiers, when they beat out Japan and Australia to secure the first automatic spot.
Renard's past managerial achievements include steering Zambia to their maiden Africa Cup of Nations title in 2012 and repeating the dose in 2015 with Cote d'Ivore.
Argentina's showdown with Mexico in the second match of the group stage could also prove a serious threat to Scaloni's side and their hopes of topping Group C.
Born in Argentina, Mexico head coach Gerardo Martino previously coached his home nation between 2014 and 2016, with his familiarisation with Messi further dating back to the 2013-14 season when he was in charge of Barcelona.
While star Wolverhampton forward Raúl Jiménez is currently injured and facing a race against the clock to be fit for the World Cup, the Mexicans still boast Russia 2018 breakout star Hirving Lozano among their ranks as well as Guillermo Ochoa in goal for potentially his final World Cup.
The final group game against Poland could decide either side's fate at the tournament, with talisman Robert Lewandowski and the attacking support of Sebastian Szymański from Feyenoord and Napoli's Piotr Zieliński in midfield looking to stand in the way of the South Americans.
This match could set up a mouth-watering round of 16 encounter with a side from Australia's Group D, which could involve one of Messi’s predicted winners of the tournament: France.
WATCH every match of the FIFA World Cup 2022ᵀᴹ LIVE and FREE on SBS and SBS On Demand.
