Home » Lionel Messi will not join Argentina squad due to injury

Lionel Messi will not join Argentina squad due to injury

Lionel Messi will not join Argentina for their World Cup qualifiers after MRI revealed that he sustained an injury in his adductor muscle.

Visit SportsMania for more football news and updates.

Check out M88 Mansion’s best offers here.

Messi will not join Argentina

Argentina will face Brazil and Uruguay in the World Cup qualifiers on March 25.

Inter Miami announced that Messi underwent an MRI on Monday after experiencing discomfort in his adductor during Sunday’s 2-1 win over Atlanta United FC.

“Messi underwent an MRI this morning to assess the extent of the discomfort in his adductor region, which he experienced during last night’s match against Atlanta United,” Miami said in a statement.

“The examination’s findings confirmed the presence of a low-grade injury in the adductor muscle. His clinical progress and response to treatment will determine his availability for competition.”

The 37-year-old forward was included in the initial 33-player roster on March 2, despite concerns about his physical condition.

“It’s a shame to miss these two special matches with the national team against Uruguay and Brazil,” Messi said on his Instagram account.

“As always, I wanted to be there, but at the last minute, I suffered an injury. It wasn’t serious…”

Load management

Messi missed three matches for Inter Miami due to load management before returning on Thursday as a substitute in a Concacaf Champions Cup win over Cavalier FC.

The load management was a precautionary measure ahead of a long season, which includes participation in this summer’s inaugural Club World Cup.

“We tried to take away from the overload Messi had, so that it wouldn’t go further than that. We tried to handle it in the best way,” Mascherano said ahead of Sunday’s match.

Luckily, we were able to control it and that it didn’t turn into an injury or much more. Today he’s better and we decided to start giving him minutes. There’s no secret in this.”

Mascherano revealed that Inter Miami’s doctors were in constant communication with the Argentina national team’s medical staff to stay informed about Messi’s status and plan accordingly.

Before the game against Atlanta, the coach added that Messi would likely have no issues joining La Albiceleste.

“Obviously the Argentinian national team doctors are in contact with the doctors here and they are the ones who specifically talk about that,” he said.

“I haven’t spoken with the coaching staff, but if they have any consultation, I will talk to them. I don’t think it will be necessary because the doctors are in contact all time.”

Argentina currently lead the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers with 25 points in 12 games.