Ranking the 5 best Argentine players this year (2021)

#3 Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan/Argentina)

FC Internazionale vs Cagliari Calcio - Serie A

Lautaro Martinez is one of the top Argentine goalscorers in the game at the moment.

The Inter Milan attacker bagged 30 goal contributions (19 goals, 11 assists) across competitions last season. That helped the Nerazzurri win their first league title in 11 years.

Continuing in the same vein this campaign, Martinez is already up to 11 league goals for the season, including four consecutive league strikes.

The 24-year-old has also had a stellar year with the national team. He scored thrice in Argentina's victorious Copa America 2021 sojourn, and five more times in their successful FIFA World Cup 2022 campaign.

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#2 Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa/Argentina)

Uruguay vs Argentina - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Qualifier

Emiliano Martinez has been a revelation for Argentina this year. Considered surplus to requirements at Arsenal, the lanky custodian moved to Aston Villa last season.

Playing all 38 league games, the Argentine kept an impressive 15 clean sheets as Villa finished eleventh in the league standings. However, better things were in store for Martinez.

Making his Albiceleste debut only this year, Martinez would go on to play a stellar role in Argentina's triumphant Copa America 2021 campaign. He kept four clean sheets in his last five games, including one in the final against Brazil.

Martinez then kept five consecutive clean sheets, including one against Brazil, as Argentina sealed their berth in the FIFA World Cup 2022 campaign.

He'll now hope to replicate the same exploits in club football as Villa strive to finish in the top half of the league table.

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#1 Lionel Messi (PSG/Argentina)

Manchester City vs Paris Saint-Germain: Group A - UEFA Champions League

Lionel Messi may be 34, but is still going strong for club and country. He led from the front, bagging four goals and five assists as Argentina won their first Copa America title in nearly three decades.

Before that, he had a strong finish to what turned out to be his final campaign at Barcelona. He scored 30 goals, winning a record-extending eighth Pichichi award, even as the Blaugrana finished third in the league table. Messi also scored thrice in Barcelona's triumphant Copa Del Rey campaign.

Messi may have underwhelmed after moving to PSG this summer - bagging six goals and five assists across competitions. However, he had already done more than enough to win a record-extending seventh Ballon d'Or award.

The Argentina captain has also scored five times this year in his team's successful FIFA World Cup 2022 qualification campaign.