Will Lionel Messi play for Inter Miami against Atlanta United in MLS after missing Argentina’s World Cup qualifier against Bolivia?
Lionel Messi may be absent from Inter Miami’s clash against Atlanta United in MLS after missing Argentina’s World Cup qualifier against Bolivia.
- Messi left out of Bolivia clash
- Scaloni explains his absence
- Inter Miami sweating on star man’s fitness
WHAT HAPPENED? Messi played 89 minutes of the Albiceleste’s 2026 World Cup qualifying clash with Ecuador last week, and scored the winning goal with a trademark free-kick. However, Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni revealed after the match that the 36-year-old asked to be substituted after “feeling something”, raising question marks over his availability for the team’s next game against Bolivia. Messi did end up travelling to La Paz with the rest of his team-mates, but was not named in Scaloni’s final squad for the Bolivia game, which Argentina won 3-0 thanks to goals from Enzo Fernandez, Nicolas Tagliafico and Nicolas Gonzalez.
WHY DIDN’T MESSI PLAY AGAINST BOLIVIA? Scaloni offered up an explanation for Messi’s absence in his post-match press conference, telling reporters: “He wasn’t ready to play. Yesterday he tried to recover and he didn’t feel comfortable and we didn’t take the risk.”
The Argentina head coach added: “He wasn’t fit. Yesterday in training we wanted him to try and he didn’t even try.”
WILL MESSI BE FIT TO FACE ATLANTA IN MLS? The specific nature of Messi’s injury has not yet been confirmed, but Scaloni’s comments suggest that he could be a doubt for Inter Miami’s next MLS fixture against Atlanta United on September 16. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner will likely be assessed by Miami’s medical staff upon his return to the U.S. later this week. Indeed, it could be that the 36-year-old intentionally decided not to aggravate his injury and skip the Bolivia game, to allow him more time to recover and be in contention to feature on Saturday. The other factor working against those hoping to see Messi feature is the short turnover time, with the forward having stayed in Bolivia to watch his team-mates in action, meaning he isn’t likely to return to the U.S. until Wednesday at the earliest. Indeed, the flight time from Santa Cruz to Miami is a little over six hours.
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Miami secured a 3-2 win over Sporting Kansas City without Messi in their last outing, but head coach Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino will be desperate to welcome their star man back into the fold as soon as possible. Messi left Paris Saint-Germain in June before signing a two-year deal at DRV PNK Stadium, and has scored 11 goals in his first 11 games for Miami, helping them lift the inaugural League Cup trophy in the process. Inter Miami are also through to the U.S. Open Cup final and still have an outside chance of reaching the MLS playoffs, with Messi’s brilliant performances helping to inspire a rapid turnaround in fortunes.
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WHAT’S NEXT FOR MESSI? Inter Miami fans will hope that Messi recovers in time to make the trip to Atlanta, but if not, the World Cup winner should be back for their next MLS fixture at home against Toronto on September 20.
