March 19 – Even the very best run out of gas eventually, and one can’t help wondering if ‘father time’ is finally catching up with the world’s greatest player, Lionel Messi after he was left out of Argentina’s World Cup qualifying squad.
For Messi to miss matches against two of Argentina’s biggest rivals, Brazil and Uruguay has raised eyebrows around the football globe, as Messi has truly been one of the most durable players of the last three decades.
Messi, 37, has played in a remarkable 1,088 matches for club and country since making his debut for Barcelona in a friendly match versus FC Porto on November 16, 2003, at the age of 16.
His manager at Inter Miami, and fellow Argentine, Javier Mascherano has avoided saying that Messi has an injury, however, reports in Argentina and the US are concerned about a possible muscle injury sustained in the weekend Major League Soccer (MLS) game versus Atlanta United.
Messi will turn 39 years old during the World Cup, and it remains to be seen whether Argentina manager, Lionel Scaloni, will continue to build the team around his GOAT. After winning the World Cup in 2022, Scaloni, has often said that he wants to give younger players an opportunity to represent La Albicelesta, and now he’ll have the chance.
The prospect of a FIFA World Cup without Messi is surely giving FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, nightmares as he is still, remarkably, the biggest draw in global football.
Mascherano who represented his country 147 times, second only to Messi, knows all about player workload, and with Inter Miami competing in MLS, Concacaf Champions League, Leagues Cup, and FIFA Club World Cup, Messi has the potential to be a broken man by season’s end.
It has been noted that when a player hits the end of the road, it is sudden and not a steady decline. After winning the World Cup, multiple UEFA Champions League crowns, and every domestic honor ever invented – if Messi was to become an occasional ‘show pony’ he will have earned it.
Contact the writer of this story, Nick Webster, at moc.l1742422063labto1742422063ofdlr1742422063owedi1742422063sni@o1742422063fni1742422063