Arsenal lose Messi Cup opener & face Barcelona next

Arsenal lose Messi Cup opener & face Barcelona nextArsenal lost their Messi Cup opener on Sunday, but the young Gunners will immediately get the chance to turn things around on Monday.Photo by Carl Recine/Getty ImagesThe Arsenal u16s played their first match at the second annual edition of the Messi Cup on Sunday, but they slipped to a disappointing defeat against Newell’s Old Boys.Jeremias Suarez gave Newell’s Old Boys the lead in the very early stages of the game, with an element of fortune as a low cross managed to evade almost every player in the area to fall to Suarez for a tap-in.Unfortunately, that goal ended up setting the tone for the rest of the match, with Arsenal’s opponents content to sit on their lead and frustrate the young Gunners.For Arsenal’s part, they were unable to do enough to break their opposition down, and chances were few and far between.Photo by Elsa/Getty ImagesArsenal will immediately get the chance to respond to their opening 1-0 defeat, but the group stage is going to be an uphill battle now. The youngsters play Barcelona on Monday, and another defeat would likely prove fatal for their chances of finishing in the top-two.Arsenal’s final group game is against Palmeiras on Tuesday, with Palmeiras winning their opening game against Barcelona 2-0 and set to face Newell’s Old Boys next.If Arsenal finish 1st or 2nd in their group, they’ll then progress to a top-eight knockout bracket between the four groups. If they finish 3rd or 4th, they’ll enter a bracket with the bottom-eight teams.Either way, they’ll play three knockout matches to determine their final position, with eliminated teams facing off against each other to decide their ranking.Arsenal Messi Cup squadPhoto via Arsenal.comArsenal u16 squad: Albie Shea, Kendrick Van Djoy, Jaden Maghoma, Abdul Zakari, Travis Chilard-Martin, Giovahn Jones, Reiss Tweneboa Kodua, Darius Odeyemi, Max Chuderski, Blake Day King, Jayden Anidi, Fletcher McBryde, Beau Luton, Isaiah Matthews, Kayden Joseph, Leo Aliadiere, Khamil Hall, Jayce Smith, Onye Asiegbu, and Frankie Wyatt.2026 Messi Cup participantsPhoto by David Ramos/Getty Images