Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni has offered cautious optimism over the fitness of captain Lionel Messi after the forward suffered a hamstring issue less than three weeks before the start of the World Cup.
Speaking to Argentine broadcaster DSports on Tuesday, Scaloni said the initial medical assessments suggested the problem was not as serious as first feared, though further tests would determine the extent of the injury.
“Obviously we would have preferred that nothing had happened,” Scaloni said. “Now we have to wait and see how it evolves and, above all, what the new tests show.”
Messi, now 38, left Inter Miami CF’s dramatic 6-4 win over Philadelphia on Sunday in the 73rd minute after appearing uncomfortable. The club later confirmed he had muscle fatigue in his left hamstring.
The timing has raised concern in Argentina, where Messi remains central to the team’s hopes of defending the World Cup title they won in Qatar four years ago. Even in the closing stages of his career, he continues to shape the side on and off the pitch.
Scaloni revealed he had been watching the match from the Argentine federation headquarters and felt reassured when Messi chose to come off rather than continue playing through discomfort.
After the match, Inter Miami manager Guillermo Hoyos said the pitch conditions had been demanding and insisted the club did not want to take unnecessary risks with the veteran forward.
In a brief statement issued on Monday, Inter Miami said Messi’s return would depend on his “clinical and functional progress”, offering little detail on a possible recovery timeline.
Argentina open their World Cup campaign against Algeria on June 16 in Kansas City before facing Austria and Jordan in Group J.
The South Americans are also scheduled to play warm-up matches against Honduras and Iceland in the United States next month.
Messi has carefully managed his workload since joining Inter Miami in 2023, often sitting out matches during congested periods of the Major League Soccer season. With MLS currently paused for the World Cup, attention has shifted fully to whether football’s most decorated player will be ready in time.
Although Messi has yet to formally confirm this will be his final World Cup, he is widely expected to feature in what would be a sixth appearance at the tournament, a feat matched only by a select few, including longtime rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
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