Messi ruled out of Miami’s Leagues Cup clash with Pumas

MIAMI: Football legend Lionel Messi won’t be taking the field for Inter Miami in their important Leagues Cup match against Pumas UNAM. 

The star forward has picked up a minor muscle injury, his coach said, adding that the the footballer needs time to recover before playing again.

The Argentinian striker suffered what Mascherano described as a “minor muscle injury” in his upper right leg during Miami’s win over Necaxa last Saturday.

While there is no set timetable for Messi’s return, Mascherano remained hopeful the star forward would be back on the pitch soon.

“Within the bad news, it’s good news,” Mascherano told reporters.

“He usually recovers very well from injuries and, above all, normally does so with speed, so we will see. But clearly, for tomorrow he is unavailable. Then we’ll see how he feels, how he progresses.”

Messi, who leads the league with 18 goals in MLS matches this season, helped guide Miami to the Leagues Cup title in 2023 shortly after joining the Herons.

Inter Miami will likely need a win over Pumas in their final group stage match to reach the quarter-finals of the Leagues Cup, which includes teams from MLS and Mexico’s top division.

If Miami progress to the knockout stage, Messi would have two weeks to recover before the quarter-finals.

Miami’s next MLS fixture is scheduled for Sunday against Orlando.