Messi still unfit in training; the Coach expects him to be fit before the Porto match
Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano said Lionel Messi would be fit to face Porto at the Club World Cup on Thursday, despite showing signs of discomfort in training. A video emerged of Messi touching his left leg during the session on Wednesday, but Mascherano confirmed the veteran forward was ready for Miami’s second Group A match in Atlanta. “On the trip from Miami to Atlanta I saw that came out in some places, but Leo is fit, he trained, he completed the whole session,” Mascherano told reporters. “He was touching his leg, sometimes people touch themselves, but there’s no problem, he’s fit and obviously he will play tomorrow.” The coach said Messi’s former Barcelona team-mate Jordi Alba was available after missing the opening 0-0 draw against Al Ahly due to injury. “We’ll evaluate what’s best for us if he starts or not,” said the coach. “Actually, I already know but I won’t tell you.” Mascherano meanwhile said retaining possession would be the key against Portugal’s Porto, regular Champions League participants who are likely to provide the MLS team with a stern test. “We have players who feel much more comfortable when they’re in possession, dominating, and having control of the game through the ball,” said the Argentine. “Of course, we’re facing a team that also is used to doing that, who are a high-level side. “But on the pitch, we’re 11 against 11, we’ll try to shut down their strengths, expose their weaknesses, and try to have a great game to get a good result.” Inter Miami midfielder Sergio Busquets, a member of Spain’s 2010 World Cup-winning side and one of Messi’s former Barcelona team-mates admitted his team would be up against it at the Mercedes-Benz stadium.
Argentina can now play without Messi: Scaloni
Argentina has learned to cope with Lionel Messi’s absences and no longer needs to reorganize the line-up when the Inter Miami forward is not available, manager Lionel Scaloni said before Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier against Columbia. Colombia defeated Argentina 2-1 when the sides met last time in the World Cup qualifiers in September. Since making his senior debut in 2005, Messi has scored 112 goals in 192 appearances for Argentina, winning the World Cup in 2022, two Copa America titles, and a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The 37-year-old captain missed Argentina’s 1-0 win over Uruguay and 4-1 thrashing of rival Brazil in March due to injury, with Scaloni’s side securing its place at the 2026 World Cup during that international break. He returned to the squad for this month’s World Cup qualifiers and made a substitute appearance in Argentina’s 1-0 win over Chile last week. “The team is now in a moment where it can play in the same way with Leo (Messi) or without Leo, which used to be more complex in the past as we had to change some players,” Scaloni told reporters ahead of the match in Buenos Aires. “But now we don’t have this necessity and the team works in the same way, that’s good.” While Argentina has already qualified for the World Cup in North America, Colombia is in the sixth and final automatic qualification spot and will be looking to put some distance between itself and seventh-placed Venezuela with a win. “It’s a great team and with great players, and it has a clear style that can put you in trouble,” Scaloni said. “We’ve analyzed it, we’ve shown the players their strengths and what we want to take advantage of. It’s going to be a nice game, especially because we play at home, so it’s good for our people to see the players.”
Despite the uncertainty, Kerala Sports Ministry’s effort to organize the Messi-match
Sudeep Pakrashi: Due to failure to arrange the appearance fees for Argentina’s World Cup-winning team including the captain Lionel Messi, the chances of organizing the two scheduled friendly matches in Kerala are slim. Still, Kerala’s sports ministry is making an effort to accumulate the funds to organize the match. The matches were scheduled to be held in October this year. According to reports from local newspapers, the organizers have failed to raise the minimum Rs 100 crore required to arrange the matches. Rs 70 crore was reportedly needed just as the appearance fee for the Argentina team. HSBC India, which associated itself with Argentina football team to promote the sport in India and Singapore, had also announced that the team would visit to India in October this year. The statement gave more strength to the hopes that Messi will finally be coming to India. But the bank has now stopped commenting on the issue. But according to Kerala Sports Ministry, efforts are still on to find out new corporate houses who can come forward with the needed financial investment to organize the match as the Sports Ministry is keen about the match to be happened in the state for the promotion of the game. In that case, the matches can be rescheduled sometime in 2026, after the Fifa World Cup to be held in June-July. Meanwhile, the Kerala Super League this year, scheduled to kick off at the end of August, also looks uncertain as two teams seem unwilling to make the investment and build up their respective teams so far due to their financial difficulties. It is believed the franchises were disappointed following the organizer’s failure to fulfill the financial commitment to the participating franchises after the inaugural edition of the league. It is learned that among the two teams unwilling to continue so far, one is the Kannur Warriors. According to sources close to the organizers, the top brass of the other participating teams is also waiting for the final status of Anil Kumar in the All India Football Federation (AIFF). Kumar, the secretary of Kerala Football Association (KFA), was the key man behind the introduction of KSL last year, and the Supreme Court has imposed a stay-order on his appointment as the Secretary General of the AIFF.
