Messi’s status for US Open Cup final on Wednesday remains unclear

Messi’s status for US Open Cup final on Wednesday remains unclear

For Inter Miami’s U.S. Open Cup final game versus Houston on Wednesday night, Lionel Messi’s condition is still unknown.

The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner missed the team’s 1-1 draw at Orlando on Sunday after being substituted out of a game against Toronto on September 20 in the first half due to a leg injury. He had missed three full matches in the previous two weeks—two for club and one for country.

Messi was absent from the pitch during the section of Tuesday’s training session that was open to press. Inter Miami coach Gerardo ”Tata” Martino stated at a post-practice press conference at the team’s offices in Fort Lauderdale that Messi’s status will not be decided before Wednesday.

Inter Miami midfielder Sergio Busquets stated that lacking the best player in the world is a disadvantage.

Messi’s leg issue’s nature is still unknown. Messi’s absences were initially attributed to fatigue, but Martino finally revealed last week that the issue is caused by scar tissue from an earlier injury. During the game on September 20, Messi could be seen stretching occasionally, as if he were experiencing some form of physical problem.

Martino stated that Jordi Alba, another midseason acquisition by Inter Miami, is anticipated to miss the Cup final due to injury. He left the Toronto match on September 20 just three minutes before Messi was replaced.

Messi, 36, was absent from Inter Miami’s 5-2 loss to Atlanta United on September 16 and Argentina’s 1-0 victory over Bolivia in a World Cup qualifier on September 12. He made a comeback for the match on September 20 but didn’t even last until halfway.

Three games are coming up for Inter Miami, who are still in the mix to qualify for the Major League Soccer playoffs. The club hosts New York City FC on Saturday, travels to Chicago on October 4, and then faces Cincinnati at home on October 7.

Any choice about Messi’s availability for the forthcoming MLS games will be determined after Wednesday, according to Martino.

Since Messi made his debut for the club, the team has won nine and tied five of its 15 games, suffering just one defeat. Three of the ties occurred during tournament play, with Inter Miami winning all three times on penalties. Two of those ties occurred in the Leagues Cup, including the Miami club’s first-ever championship game versus Nashville, and one occurred in the U.S. Open Cup semifinals.

Messi, who will earn between $125 million and $150 million for Inter Miami over the course of his two and a half year contract, has participated in 12 games for Miami, the majority of which have been Leagues Cup and U.S. Open Cup contests. In four MLS games, he has one goal and two assists in addition to his 11 goals and eight assists.

However, there are worries that Messi’s workload from playing so frequently is starting to show.

Busquets declared, “We’re not machines, we’re not robots.” “We’d love to play every game without getting worn out or hurt.” But we have no control over it.

On the secondary market, match tickets for Wednesday ranged in price from approximately $170 to more than $5,000 each (sales were promoted by the team Tuesday morning, despite Messi’s status being uncertain).

Messi won the Leagues Cup trophy, his 44th major championship overall in his career and the most in world history for club and nation combined.