What happened to Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami?
There was a period towards the end of the summer when a day seemingly didn’t pass without Messi inspiring the Herons to yet another victory, but discourse surrounding David Beckham’s franchise has quietened drastically in recent weeks.
Why? The answer is simple: no Messi.
The Argentine’s influence hardly came as a surprise given what he achieved in Qatar at the end of 2022. Messi dazzled as Inter Miami lifted the Leagues Cup during the MLS mid-season break, but he had a uphill battle if he was to lead his side into the MLS Cup playoffs given their woeful start to the campaign under Phil Neville.
Messi’s recent absence due to injury dashed their chances of making the post-season and they’ve since been officially eliminated from contention. The Argentine, though, has been called up to Lionel Scaloni’s squad for La Albiceleste’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers. But is he going to feature?
Before playing 35 minutes as Miami were beaten by FC Cincinnati on Saturday which ruled them out of the playoffs, Messi hadn’t featured for the MLS side since 4 September.
He missed two games as he took part in Argentina’s September qualifiers but a hamstring injury sustained on international duty meant he missed the Herons’ next five game, including the US Open final.
However, his recent return to fitness saw him earn the call-up to Scaloni’s squad for Argentina’s October qualifiers against Paraguay and Peru.
Despite his call-up, the 36-year-old is a doubt for Argentina’s upcoming clash against Paraguay on Thursday night.
“For him, one more training session is important, and I will talk to him to decide whether he plays or not, but I have to talk to him first and above all I have to be sure that he can start,” Scaloni said on Messi’s status.
“He could play 80 minutes against Paraguay and not play against Peru or he could play both games. The important thing is that he feels comfortable,” he added.
While it appears Messi should feature against Paraguay at some point, the superstar forward may not start with Scaloni hinting that his minutes will need to be managed.
Given that Messi’s domestic season will end on 21 October as Inter Miami won’t be competing in the MLS Cup playoffs, the Argentine leaving the club on loan until the start of the 2024 season had been mooted as a possibility.
Barcelona were once again linked with a reunion, as was the prospect of Messi joining a Saudi Pro League club.
However, Spanish football expert Guillem Balague has ruled out any sort of move taking place: “Messi will have around one month holiday, like other footballers. So forget any move to Saudi or similar,” he said.
The 36-year-old’s break will likely last up until the end of the year before Inter Miami’s pre-season begins ahead of the 2024 MLS campaign. Argentina also have another round of fixtures in November and they are games Messi won’t want to miss as they host Uruguay and travel to eternal rivals Brazil.
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