Soccer icon Lionel Messi is on the mend from a left hamstring injury and may take the field during Argentina’s exhibition games leading up to the World Cup.
Team manager Lionel Scaloni provided an update Friday on the star player’s health status before Argentina’s upcoming friendlies – Saturday’s match against Honduras in College Station, Texas, and Tuesday’s contest versus Iceland in Auburn, Alabama.
“Leo is doing well,” Scaloni stated. “Leo trained for a part (of the Friday practice) with the group, which is important. He’s not fully separated. He’s coming along. He may be part of the friendly matches, getting some minutes in these two friendlies. We’ll see if it’s the one (Saturday) or the next one. But he’s doing a lot better and that gives us tranquility.”
The 38-year-old Messi sustained his injury during Inter Miami’s May 24 game, which was the team’s final contest before Major League Soccer paused for two months because of the World Cup.
Argentina holds the current World Cup title, with Messi earning the Golden Ball award as the tournament’s top performer at the 2022 competition in Qatar.
In 14 appearances for Inter Miami this season, Messi has netted 12 goals while contributing eight assists. On Friday, he earned selection to the MLS All-Star squad for the July 29 game in Charlotte featuring top talent from Mexico’s Liga MX.
Messi’s international career spans 198 appearances for Argentina, during which he has scored 116 goals – the second-most in global competition history. Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo leads with 143 international goals.
Messi holds the record for most World Cup appearances at 26 games, surpassing Germany’s Lothar Matthaus by one. Both Messi and Ronaldo will participate in their sixth World Cup, establishing a new record.
At the upcoming World Cup, Argentina will compete in Group J with games against Algeria on June 16 in Kansas City, Missouri; Austria on June 22 in Arlington, Texas; and Jordan on June 27 in Arlington.
