Paris Saint-Germain star Lionel Messi will captain Argentina at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, while Roma's Paulo Dybala has also been named in the 26-man squad.

Messi, 35, will be looking to establish his place in the pantheon of the game's all-time greats at this year's tournament as he bids to lift the World Cup trophy for the very first time in his career.

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner managed to get his hands on his first major international trophy when he guided Argentina to Copa America glory in 2021, and he is now hoping for more success at his fifth – and potentially last – World Cup.

Messi scored five of his 90 international goals for Argentina in World Cup qualifying, and the legendary forward will once again be a key asset for Lionel Scaloni's side.

Argentina's No.10 is one of seven attackers who have been selected in Scaloni's squad, along with Roma's summer signing Dybala, who has made the cut despite his recent injury concerns.

The 28-year-old has been sidelined since early October and has subsequently missed eight matches in all competitions due to a hamstring injury.

However, the 34-cap forward will be heading to Qatar and he is in contention to feature for Jose Mourinho's Roma side against Torino on Sunday after stepping up his recovery in training.

Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez and Joaquin Correa, Juventus' Angel Di Maria, Manchester City's Julian Alvarez and Fiorentina's Nicolas Gonzalez will also be competing for a place in attack for Scaloni's side.

Argentina's squad consists of five Premier League players, with Alvarez joined by Manchester United's Lisandro Martinez, Aston Villa's Emiliano Martinez, Brighton & Hove Albion's Alexis Mac Allister and Tottenham Hotspur's Cristian Romero.

The latter of whom is currently sidelined with a calf injury, and Scaloni's has revealed that he has asked clubs not to select any of his players with fitness issues this weekend to give them the best possible chance of recovering in time for the start of the World Cup.

"We are talking to the clubs so that players who are not at 100% do not play their match," Scaloni told reporters. "We have been working to see if they can release them [the players], but it's difficult.

"There will be some players who, as a precaution, will not play the last few games, but we know that they are fine and that it is a decision thinking more about what's coming than anything else."

Elsewhere, River Plate goalkeeper Franco Armani is the only home-based player in Scaloni's 26-man squad; the 36-year-old is also Argentina's oldest squad member for the trip to Qatar and he will be competing with Martinez and Villarreal's Geronimo Rulli for a place between the sticks.

Rising star Enzo Fernandez, who joined Benfica from River Plate over the summer, will be heading to his first World Cup and the two-cap international is one of seven midfield options for Argentina along with the likes of Juventus' Leandro Paredes and Atletico Madrid's Rodrigo De Paul.

However, Villarreal's Giovani Lo Celso will not be heading to Qatar as he is ruled out with a hamstring injury, while the likes of Angel Correa, Emiliano Buendia, Lucas Ocampos and Lucas Martinez Quarta are notable absentees from the final squad – Man United's 18-year-old starlet Alejandro Garnacho also misses the cut despite showcasing his quality in recent matches.

Argentina will battle with Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Poland in Group C, and their opening fixture is against the former on November 22.

Argentina's 2022 World Cup squad in full:

Goalkeepers: Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa), Geronimo Rulli (Villarreal), Franco Armani (River Plate)

Defenders: Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Gonzalo Montiel (Sevilla), Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur), German Pezzella (Real Betis), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United), Marcos Acuna (Sporting Lisbon), Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon), Juan Foyth (Villarreal)

Midfielders: Rodrigo De Paul, (Atletico Madrid), Leandro Paredes (Juventus), Alexis Mac Allister (Brighton & Hove Albion), Guido Rodriguez (Real Betis), Papu Gomez (Sevilla), Enzo Fernandez (Benfica), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen)

Attackers: Angel Di Maria (Juventus), Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan), Julian Alvarez (Manchester City), Nicolas Gonzalez (Fiorentina), Joaquin Correa (Inter Milan), Paulo Dybala (AS Roma), Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain)