Despite his ongoing injury troubles at Inter Miami, Argentina has named Lionel Messi in their squad for the upcoming South American World Cup qualifiers.
Messi has missed several recent matches for Inter Miami, including their 4-1 loss to Chicago on Wednesday, and he has only played 37 minutes for the club since September 3.
Argentina is set to host Paraguay on October 12 and then travel to face Peru in CONMEBOL qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. The 36-year-old Messi, who captained Argentina to victory in the last World Cup in Qatar, played and scored in his country's 1-0 win over Ecuador on September 7 but had to be substituted in the final minutes of that game. He subsequently missed the match against Bolivia in La Paz.
Inter Miami's Argentine coach Gerardo 'Tata' Martino initially mentioned "muscle fatigue" as Messi's issue but later referred to "scars" from an old injury troubling him. However, details about Messi's physical condition have been scarce.
Without Messi, Inter Miami has struggled, failing to win their last three games and facing challenges in their quest to reach the MLS playoffs.
During the recent game in Chicago, played at Soldier Field in front of a crowd of 62,124, Martino was asked about Messi's condition ahead of their match against Cincinnati and suggested that Messi's condition was improving. He mentioned that Messi was getting closer to playing again and that they would evaluate his condition to determine if he was fit to play.
In addition to Messi, Angel Di Maria from Benfica is also unavailable for selection due to injury. On the positive side, Messi's Miami teammate, 21-year-old winger Facundo Farias, has received his first call-up to the national team squad. Manchester United winger Alejandro Garnacho has also been included in the squad for the upcoming qualifiers under Lionel Scaloni's management.
