Napoli's Higuain dropped by Argentina

Buenos Aires - Forward Gonzalo Higuain has been dropped by Argentina for their opening two World Cup qualifiers while Juventus striker Paulo Dybala has been called up for the first time.

Higuain had a disappointing Copa America tournament in July, scoring two goals during the competition and missing his spot kick as Argentina lost on penalties to Chile in the final.

He also pulled out of this month's tour to the United States, where Argentina played Bolivia and Mexico, with a stomach problem.

Dybala had an excellent last season with Palermo in Serie A and moved to Juventus during the summer. He has already scored three goals in five games for the Serie A champions.

Higuain scored twice in Napoli's 5-0 league win over Lazio on Sunday but coach Gerardo Martino said he did not base his selections on one game.

"The list was prepared before that," he told Radio La Red. "We can't just look at one weekend, we have to look at the whole process."

Boca Juniors forward Carlos Tevez, involved in a controversial incident on Saturday when his late tackle led to an opponent breaking his ankle during a match against Argentinos Juniors, was included.

Argentina, beaten finalists in 2014, host Ecuador on Oct. 8 and visit neighbours Paraguay five days later as they kick off the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign.

Argentina squad

Goalkeepers:

Sergio Romero (Manchester United), Nahuel Guzman (UANL Tigres), Agustin Marchesin (Santos Laguna)

Defenders:

Pablo Zabaleta (Manchester City), Nicolas Otamendi (Manchester City), Martin Demichelis (Manchester City), Emmanuel Mas (San Lorenzo), Marcos Rojo (Manchester United), Facundo Roncaglia (Genoa), Ezequiel Garay (Zenit St Petersburg), Milton Casco (Newell's Old Boys), Ramiro Funes Mori (Everton)

Midfielders:

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

Forwards:

Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Paulo Dybala (Juventus), Sergio Aguero (Manchester City), Carlos Tevez (Boca Juniors), Nicolas Gaitan (Benfica), Angel Correa (Atletico Madrid), Ezequiel Lavezzi (Paris St Germain)