By staff reporter Xiang Bin

Riquelme, playmaker and captain of Argentina, said yesterday that there was no problem between him and the Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, China.org.cn reported from Shanghai.

Riquelme answering questions from reporters. [China.org.cn]

Argentina arranged a 15-minute interview for Riquelme and Lavezzi yesterday, during which the two players answered questions from the media. Roman Riquelme used this opportunity to scotch rumors involving himself and Messi, the two principal figures in the Argentina squad.

"Messi and I are OK. Some media have suggested we don't get along well with each other. That's not the truth," Riquelme said.

The captain also emphasized that he and the Barcelona forward can cooperate on the pitch.

"I will follow the head coach's guidance, and I believe we can achieve what we want in the tournament," he added.

Argentina is a strong candidate to retain the gold medal it won in Athens. In order to defend the championship in the upcoming games, Argentina has put together a very competitive team with top-level players like Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, Atletico Madrid's Sergio Aguero, Liverpool's Javier Mascherano and Real Madrid's Fernando Gago, to name a few. Over-age player Juan Roman Riquelme is the captain and playmaker of the team.

(China.org.cn August 6, 2008)