NATIONAL : The Kerala government on Wednesday announced that the Argentina national football team led by legendary player Lionel Messi will visit the state next year for an international match. Addressing a press conference here, Sports Minister V Abdurahiman said that the match would be held under the complete supervision of the state government.

Financial assistance for organising the high-profile football event will be provided by the traders of the state.

“The world’s number one football team, Argentina, comprising Lionel Messi, is coming to Kerala,” he said.The management of the Argentina team would make an official announcement in this regard.

Concerned persons of the football team would come to the southern state within one and a half months, the Minister said. “We (government) have decided to make a joint announcement in this regard with the Argentina national team management.” Responding to a question, he said the decision over the arrival of the team has been finalised and there is no change in it.

Noting that the government will directly monitor the match, security, and other arrangements in this regard, he said the venue and the opponent team would be decided later. He said the match would be held next year, but the date would be announced by the Argentina Football Federation as per the system.

Making it clear that the match would be held in a stadium that could accommodate at least 50,000 people, he indicated that Kochi is likely to be the venue. The minister pointed out that India has the largest support base for the Argentina football team, and one-fourth of the fans are in Kerala. This is the reason for the arrival of the Argentina team to the state. He expressed confidence in Kerala’s ability to host the historic occasion. PTI