Messi injury to be evaluated ‘week by week’
Lionel Messi‘s leg muscle injury will be evaluated “week by week,” Inter Miami boss Gerardo “Tata” Martino said after the Argentine star sat out Saturday’s win at D.C. United.
It was the second straight MLS game that Messi has missed. He was held out of Sunday’s 3-2 loss to Montreal and was subbed off early in the second half of Wednesday’s 3-1 victory over Nashville as Miami progressed to the Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinals
– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, NWSL more (U.S.)
Messi, 36, is scheduled to join up with the Argentina squad for two friendly internationals in the U.S., against El Salvador in Philadelphia on March 22 and versus Costa Rica in Los Angeles four days later.
“Messi’s injury must be dealt with week by week, and we will evaluate it,” Martino said. “What is clear is that there is a goal with him, which is to play in the Concacaf quarterfinals.
“He has a muscle injury. The selection issue is for the people of the national team to talk about.”
Martino had said after Miami’s win over Nashville that Messi had “a muscle overload in his right leg.”
Miami will play Liga MX‘s CF Monterrey in the quarterfinals of the Concacaf Champions Cup, with the first leg at home on April 3 and the return match in Mexico a week later. Prior to that, Miami has an MLS match against New York City FC on March 30.
Without the injured Messi, Miami used two goals from Messi’s former Barcelona teammate Luis Suárez to beat D.C. 3-1.
The Uruguayan began the game on the substitutes’ bench before entering in the 62nd minute with the game tied at 1-1. He scored in the 72nd and 85th minutes to give Miami 10 points from five games to start the season.
