The Argentine national football team, crowned with their third World Cup title at the end of 2022, will play their scheduled friendly matches on Friday and Tuesday in the United States without their star and captain Lionel Messi due to a muscle injury, according to the American soccer league, where the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner plays for Inter Miami.
The league announced the list of players joining their national teams in the upcoming international window, and Messi was absent from the World Cup winners' squad, indicating he will not participate in the matches scheduled against El Salvador on Friday in Philadelphia and Costa Rica next Tuesday in Los Angeles, as part of preparations for the Copa America set to take place in the United States next summer.
The Argentine Football Association has not released any statement regarding Messi's absence. The 36-year-old forward has been sidelined from Inter Miami's lineup due to an injury sustained in their 3-1 victory over Nashville last week in the CONCACAF Champions League, with his team reporting a "minor injury" to his right thigh.
Messi also missed the match where his team won 3-1 against DC United on Saturday in the American league. The Argentine team will also miss Italian Roma star Paulo Dybala, who is dealing with a muscle issue. However, coach Luis Scaloni can rely on Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez, who has recovered from an injury sustained earlier in February.
