Argentine star Lionel Messi suffered a muscle strain in his left hamstring during the friendly match against Barcelona SC in Ecuador a few weeks ago, prior to another friendly match in Puerto Rico
The injury just over 100 days before the 2026 World Cup quickly raised alarm bells among Inter Miami and Argentina fans, who hope that the 2022 World Cup winner will be 100% fit to play another Major League Soccer championship and arrive in good shape for the World Cup. And with the injury comes the question: Will Messi be able to play in the first game of the MLS season?
Messi vs Son Heung-min: Inter Miami vs. LAFC
The first game of the season for the reigning Major League Soccer champions, led by the legendary Javier Macherano, will be against one of the most powerful rivals in the entire league, LAFC, led by South Korean Son Heung-min
Against a top-class opponent, the Herons are looking to have their entire squad available for this important game and start on the right foot. Fortunately for all fans of Lionel Messi and his team, the former Barcelona and soccer legend is already fit and is training for this weekend’s game. Inter Miami’s first matches of the season are:
- LAFC vs. Inter Miami – Saturday, February 21 – 9:30pm Eastern Time.
- Orlando City vs. Inter Miami – Sunday, March 1 – 7pm Eastern Time.
- DC United vs. Inter Miami – Saturday, March 3 – 4:30pm ET.
- Charlotte FC vs. Inter Miami – Saturday, March 14 – 6:30pm ET.
All MLS matches in the United States are available on Apple TV via the MLS Season Pass.
Will Messi play in the 2026 World Cup with Argentina?
At the moment, the official list of players for Lionel Scaloni’s Argentina national team to play in the 2026 World Cup has not been officially released, although many Argentine and world fans take it for granted that Messi will be on the final list of the biggest World Cup in history, co-organized between Mexico, the United States and Canada
Argentina’s first phase rivals in Group J are Austria, Algeria and Jordan, opponents who on paper are much less powerful than the Albiceleste, although we cannot forget the first match of the last World Cup where they ended up losing to Saudi Arabia
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