Inter Miami manager Tata Martino has played down fears over Lionel Messi's fitness after he was spotted exiting a medical centre in Argentina.
The 37-year-old has had a jam-packed schedule in the last month and a half, playing 11 times for Inter Miami as well as turning out for his country. The superstar's ability shows now signs of being on the wane but it appears that he is beginning to feel the pressure physically.
He was withdrawn from the action by Lionel Scaloni after scoring his nation's only goal as the world champions beat Ecuador 1-0. The Argentina head coach later confirmed that he substituted his talisman after he "felt something" before asking to be taken off.
The former Barcelona hero was then seen attending the IMAXE medical center, where he is understood to have undergone some precautionary tests. The veteran forward appeared to be in a jovial mood upon his arrival, smiling at the supporters who had gathered to wish him well.
Wearing an Argentina tracksuit, he waved at fans outside the building and did not appear to be in any visible discomfort or limping as he exited. Clearly, this sighting of Messi did show that his national team's bosses are concerned about their star man, with Scaloni having already admitted: "Otherwise, I don’t take him off the pitch, that’s obvious."
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When asked by Telemundo, the world-famous winger appeared to indicate that any issues he is facing over his fitness are relatively minor. He stated: "I was a little tired, so it happened that I went out and surely it won’t be the last time I go out during matches."
After leading his team to success in the Leagues Cup, he inspired his new MLS team to a four-game unbeaten run in the league as they chase the playoffs. Speaking about Messi injury status, Inter Miami head coach Gerardo Martino said: "It does not seem like anything important, some symptoms of fatigue, at least that's the information we have, we will know more today."
Gerardo Martino spoke about dealing with the absence of Inter Miami star man Lionel Messi (Megan Briggs/Getty Images)"We know that on all squads this happens. There are players that play a lot more, others that play less that have to take advantage of these types of occasions but it's also not true that the game depends exclusively on these players who are going to play more now."
Of course the absence of the world-class striker represents a major blow for Miami, with the MLS regular season still taking place during the international break. That said, his teammates were able to navigate the loss of their leader with a crucial 3-2 victory over Sporting Kansas City.
With the Herons now six points off the final playoffs qualification berth, with two games in hand on current occupiers D.C. United, the victory was a significant triumph. Vice City boss Martino has now called on his players to maintain their resilience, even without their captain in tow.
He added: "They need to make the best effort along with the rest. We've known about these absences since the new players arrived, so for the past 20 days we imagined we would be in this spot, so this is no surprise."
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