Nicolas Otamendi brought his international career to a close following Argentina’s 2026 World Cup final defeat to Spain, becoming the first player from that squad to formally announce his retirement from the national team. At 38 years old, the defender closes a run with La Albiceleste that stretched back nearly two decades.
Otamendi’s farewell inevitably invites comparisons to his longtime teammate Lionel Messi, whose own international career has spanned even longer and produced a far higher number of appearances. While Otamendi walks away with 139 caps, Messi remains the benchmark at the top of Argentina’s all-time list with 207 appearances.
The two were teammates through nearly the entirety of Argentina‘s most successful era, sharing the field for a run of titles that redefined the national team’s standing in world football.
Otamendi’s departure marks the end of that generation’s presence as an active player, even as Messi’s own future with the team remains a lingering question after this tournament.
Otamendi’s numbers and titles alongside Messi
Otamendi made his Argentina debut on May 20, 2009, in a friendly against Panama under Diego Maradona, going on to make 139 appearances and score 7 goals over more than 17 years with the national team. His true rise to prominence came under Lionel Scaloni, becoming one of the defensive anchors of the most successful cycle in the team’s modern history.
Alongside Messi, Otamendi won the 2021 Copa America, the 2022 Finalissima, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and the 2024 Copa America, a trophy collection matched by very few players in the national team’s history.
Argentina’s most capped players of all time
With his retirement finalized, here’s where Otamendi lands among Argentina’s most capped players ever:
| Player | Caps | Debut |
| Lionel Messi | 207 | 08/17/2005 |
| Javier Mascherano | 147 | 07/16/2003 |
| Angel Di Maria | 145 | 09/06/2008 |
| Javier Zanetti | 143 | 11/16/1994 |
| Nicolas Otamendi | 139 | 05/20/2009 |
| Roberto Ayala | 114 | 11/16/1994 |
| Diego Simeone | 104 | 07/14/1988 |
| Sergio Aguero | 100 | 09/02/2006 |
| Oscar Ruggeri | 97 | 05/12/1983 |
| Sergio Romero | 96 | 09/10/2009 |
| Rodrigo De Paul | 94 | 10/11/2018 |
| Diego Maradona | 90 | 02/27/1977 |
