体坛英语新闻：Maradona revamps Argentine squad

BUENOS AIRES, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- Argentine national soccer team trained on Wednesday with a few surprises for the 2010 World Cup qualifications, including Gonzalo Higuain, Lionel Messi and Pablo Aimar in the squad.

    During the training session at the Argentine Football Association's grounds in Ezeiza, on the southern outskirts of Buenos Aires, coach Diego Maradona lined up only four having played the team's 1-0 lose to Paraguay.

    They were striker Messi, goalkeeper Sergio Romero, defender Gabriel Heinza and midfielder Javier Mascherano, as Jonas Gutierres came in on the right wing.

    During a 35-minute training match, the team beat the under-18 national team 3-0 with goals from Enzo Perez, Higuain and Angel DiMaria.

    The squad was Romero: Gutierrez, Rolando Schiavi, Heinze, Emiliano Insua; Perez, Mascherano, Di Maria; Aimar; Messi and Higuain.

    Argentina will play Peru on Saturday at River Plate's Monumental Stadium in capital Buenos Aires, and against Uruguay four days later in the Centenario Stadium in Uruguayan capital Montevideo.

    The Argentine team, which may have to play a play-off against Costa Rica to earn the berth to next year's World Cup in South Africa, now has 22 points and is fifth in the ten-team South American qualification group.