Icardi next in line after Higuain and Pratto for Argentina

Inter striker Mauro Icardi is under consideration from Argentina head coach Edgardo Bauza but is behind Atletico Mineiro's Lucas Pratto in the national team pecking order.

Despite his impressive goal return in Serie A, Icardi still has a solitary seven-minute cameo to his name for Argentina, with his absence from the international scene widely attributed to his feud with Maxi Lopez.

Bauza will attend Juventus versus Inter in Turin on Sunday, where he will also run the rule over Juve duo Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala, having visited Inter's training base on Friday – a trip that took place despite Argentina great Diego Maradona warning the 59-year-old would be a "traitor" if he met with Icardi.

In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, Bauza said talk over Icardi's private life and his controversial marriage to Lopez's ex-wife Wanda Nara were of no concern to him, but he maintained Higuain and Pratto are ahead of him in the pecking order in the build-up to March's pivotal World Cup qualifier against Chile.

"I only think about football and I consider the technical issues. The rest does not interest me," he said.

"Icardi is playing well, that is why he has the possibility of being called up. 

"So far I have not called on him because there are Higuain and Pratto in that position. 

"Is Icardi better than Pratto? You do not know this, but if something happens to one of those two, Icardi will called."

Bauza also defended Dybala, with the 23-year-old's form this season suggesting that the tag of being Lionel Messi's heir attached to him by some observers is hanging heavily.

"He should not be compared to anyone, he is a great player and has a great future ahead," the coach added.

"He is still very young and should not be weighed down with these comparisons. He should be left in peace."