Carlos Tevez named in Argentina squad for friendlies

Buenos Aires: Argentina football coach Gerardo Martino has named Carlos Tevez in his squad for international friendlies in the United States later this month.

The Juventus forward is set to vie for the central striker position with Napoli's Gonzalo Higuain and Manchester City's Sergio Aguero, reports Xinhua.

Tevez was on Tuesday handed an international recall by Martino in November after an absence of more than three years.

As expected, Argentina's 22-man squad included Lionel Messi, his Barcelona teammate Javier Mascherano and Manchester United's Angle Di Maria.

Real Sociedad goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli was handed a first call-up while Villarreal defender Mateo Musacchio was recalled for the first time since 2011. Manchester City defender Martin Demichelis was dropped.

The Albiceleste will play El Salvador in Washington on March 28 followed by a clash against Ecuador in New Jersey three days later.

The matches will provide one of the last chances for Martino to assess his squad ahead of the Copa America, which will be played in Chile from June 11 to July 4.

Argentina squad:

Goalkeepers: Nahuel Guzman (UANL Tigres), Sergio Romero (Sampdoria), Geronimo Rulli (Real Sociedad)

Defenders: Ezequiel Garay (Zenit St Petersburg), Pablo Zabaleta (Manchester City), Marcos Rojo (Manchester United), Facundo Roncaglia (Genoa), Mateo Musacchio (Villarreal), Lucas Orban, Nicolas Otamendi (both Valencia)

Midfielders: Javier Mascherano (Barcelona), Javier Pastore (Paris St-Germain), Angel Di Maria(Manchester United), Lucas Biglia (Lazio), Roberto Pereyra (Juventus), Ever Banega (Sevilla), Enzo Perez (Valencia)

Forwards: Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Ezequiel Lavezzi (Paris St-Germain), Sergio Aguero(Manchester City), Gonzalo Higuain (Napoli), Carlos Tevez (Juventus).