Argentina Beats Bolivia in First Match Without Messi
Listen to the story
Argentina played a friendly football match against Bolivia on 1 October 2026.
This was Argentina's first match without star player Lionel Messi.
Argentina won the match easily. The team scored many goals.
The coach of Argentina is Lionel Scaloni. He was very happy after the game.
Scaloni praised a young player named Leonel Flores. Flores plays for Boca Juniors, a famous team in Argentina.
Flores played his first match for the Argentina national team. He played with no fear.
People now think Flores could be a new star for Argentina's football team.
Vocabulary15 words
- friendly
- a game that is not part of a big competition
- coach
- the person who trains a sports team
- star player
- a very famous and important player
- national team
- a team that plays for a whole country
- debut
- a person's first time doing something, like playing a match
- praise
- to say good things about someone
- fear
- a feeling of being afraid
- sensation
- a person who does something very well and surprises people
- score
- to get a goal or point in a game
- win
- to be the best in a game
- match
- a game between two teams
- famous
- known by many people
- young
- not old
- easily
- without difficulty
- goal
- a point scored in football
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Quiz
Answer key
1. Bolivia 2. It was the first match without Lionel Messi 3. True
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Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Argentina played a _____ football match against Bolivia on 1 October 2026.
This was Argentina's first match without star player Lionel _____.
Argentina _____ the match easily. The team scored many goals.
The _____ of Argentina is Lionel Scaloni. He was very happy after the game.
Scaloni praised a young player named Leonel _____. Flores plays for Boca Juniors, a famous team in Argentina.
Flores played his first match for the Argentina _____ team. He played with no fear.
People now think Flores could be a new _____ for Argentina's football team.
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