Oscar Ruggeri, who won the title with La Albiceleste in 1986, made this unusual request in order to see Messi in shape for the World Cup

Argentina's former footballers seem desperate to see La Albiceleste win a trophy with Lionel Messi on the pitch, and with that in mind, some of them have asked "La Pulga" to find rest before the World Cup, even if he misses some games with Barcelona.

Such is the case of Oscar Ruggeri, one of Argentina's center backs in the 1986 World Cup. "El Cabezón" was a key member of that team and a well-respected figure in Argentina, and today he demanded Messi not to play more games with Los Blaugranas if he wants to get to summer's tournament in fine form.

"Do you think Barcelona will lose the league title if Messi doesn't play again? Messi should phone the president of the club and tell him, this is my World Cup, I'm going to dedicate myself to the national team," Ruggeri stated on Fox Sports Argentina.

The former Real Madrid player added that doing so would be a way of showing Barcelona's execs who calls the shots at Camp Nou, and would also have a positive effect on his La Albiceleste team-mates.

"What do you think the other players will do if they see Messi going to work with Sampaoli? They would go with him. He should ring Sampaoli now and tell him that he will be concentrating fully on the World Cup," the former footballer added.

Messi still has six games to go at Barcelona. Added to the five games left in La Liga, Los Blaugranas will face Sevilla next Saturday in the Copa del Rey final, and even though he may get some rest after securing the title, it seems far-fetched to see Messi sitting out on more than one game in the Spanish top flight.