Following Argentina’s first loss in almost a year against Uruguay, fans were hoping to see a sharp Lionel Messi against arch-rivals Brazil. Messi himself does not have the best of records against Brazil (6 goals in 15 games) and would have been hoping to set things straight. However, things took an unexpected turn as an injury forced the soccer icon to exit the match early, an abrupt end to his final game in 2023.

Messi enjoyed an impressive debut season for Inter-Miami and even won the MVP award despite playing for just 3 months. His presence proved to be vital to Inter Miami’s hopes of MLS success and David Beckham would be hoping to have his maestro back soon from injury.

Injury forces Lionel Messi off against Brazil

Lionel Messi was subbed off in the 80th minute against Brazil. The speculation is that the soccer icon has suffered a minor hamstring injury as he was seen holding his thighs. Even before his injury, Lionel Messi did not look very comfortable. However, at that point in time, Argentina was leading the match 1-0, after an Otamendi goal. This helped Lionel Scaloni avoid risks as he subbed off his star player.

Hamstring injuries usually take between 3-8 weeks of recovery, while the most severe grade 3 tear takes around 3 months. Considering that Inter Miami is already planning preseason matches in February, Messi’s substitution might be a cautionary one.

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Yet his substitution caused worry among Argentina fans as they believed that Brazil might claw their way back into the game. Nevertheless, an untimely red card for Newcastle United midfielder Joelinton helped Argentina control proceedings and ease their way to victory.

Argentina’s next game is in September 2024. Hence, the next time we will see him in action will likely be during Inter Miami’s pre-season friendlies. All in all, it’s been quite a successful year for the 36-year-old, however, it ended quite sadly with the unfortunate injury. He joins a long list of players to get injured on international duty. Let’s dive deeper.

Messi becomes the last name to join the long injury list

Erling Haaland, Vinicius Junior, and Warren Zaire Emery are just a few of the names who became casualties during the international break. Barcelona youngster Gavi on the other hand saw his season end as he was diagnosed with an ACL tear after the game against Georgia. Perhaps, should FIFA and UEFA look to reduce the frequency of games the protect their players?

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Liverpool defender Virgil Van Dijk has also spoken out about playing too many games. The defender added that playing games every 3-4 days forces players to miss out on family time too. With the increasing amount of injuries in soccer, would reducing the number of matches be a wise choice? Would it possibly improve the quality of soccer matches? Let us know in the comments below.

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