Messi to miss final Copa America group stage match with thigh injury

Messi to miss final Copa America group stage match with thigh injury

Blog Article

Argentina's soccer hero Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), who is participating in what could be his last South American Soccer Championship (Copa

America), will miss the final group match due to injury.

Argentina national team coach Walter Samuel said at a press conference held at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, USA on the 29th

(Korean time), "Messi had a problem in the last game. He will not play in the next game."

Defending champion Argentina, which secured its spot in the quarterfinals by defeating Canada and Chile in the group stage of this tournament, will

face Peru in its final third match of Group A of the Copa America group stage on the 30th at Hard Rock Stadium.

Star player Messi played the full 90 minutes in both matches, but after the second group match against Chile on the 26th, he complained of

discomfort in his thigh and ultimately decided not to play in the match against Peru.

At a meeting with reporters after the game against Chile, Messi said, "I felt a little discomfort in my right hamstring early in the game. It felt like it was

pulling."

He also explained, "My hamstrings were stiff in the first play. I didn't feel any snapping or tearing, but it was difficult to move them freely."

Messi, who reached the pinnacle of his career by leading Argentina to victory at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, may find this Copa America his last

international 합법 tournament.

He is reticent to say anything about participating in the 2026 North and Central America World Cup, which is two years away, and he will be in his

40s when the Copa America is held in four years.

For this reason, his performance in this tournament is attracting more attention, but injury has emerged as a variable.

The quarterfinals are scheduled to start on July 5th, so the predictions within and outside the Argentine national team are that Messi will be able to

return once the finals are played.

Meanwhile, the Argentina national team will play against Peru without coach Lionel Scaloni in addition to Messi.

Coach Scaloni was suspended for one game during the first game of this tournament against Canada because the team did not return to the ground on

time after halftime.