Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni must work around the absence of two full-backs for Tuesday's World Cup 2022 semi-final with Croatia at Lusail Iconic Stadium.

La Albiceleste made the final four after edging past the Netherlands on penalties following a 2-2 draw, and no fewer than 17 yellow cards were brandished on the day.

Two of those bookings were for Marcos Acuna and Gonzalo Montiel, both of whom have now been ruled out of the semi-final after collecting their second yellow cards of the tournament.

Montiel was facing a losing battle to displace Nahuel Molina at right-back anyway, but Acuna's ban means that the services of Nicolas Tagliafico will be required on the left.

Scaloni opted to match the Netherlands' setup with five defenders in the quarter-finals, allowing Lisandro Martinez to link up with Cristian Romero and Nicolas Otamendi from the off.

However, reverting to a four-man backline could see the Manchester United man now cede his place in front of Emiliano Martinez, who stopped two penalties in the quarter-final shootout.

Alexis Mac Allister and Enzo Fernandez can feel confident of holding their spots in the middle next to Rodrigo De Paul, who remains at Scaloni's disposal despite a concern over his fitness.

Angel Di Maria and Alejandro Gomez should both be ready to start here too, and it would not be surprising to see the former come in alongside Lionel Messi and Julian Alvarez up front.

Argentina possible starting lineup: E. Martinez; Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Tagliafico; Fernandez, De Paul, Mac Allister; Di Maria, Messi, Alvarez

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