There is no doubt that Lionel Messi has changed the game in Major League Soccer. The Argentine has turned Inter Miami, a team that couldn’t challenge for anything before, into a team that has been winning games left and right. He has been great on the pitch and has also inspired his new teammates to become better.
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner helped Inter Miami win the Leagues Cup final, the first trophy for the club and currently they are in another final in the US Open Cup. However, the chances of the club winning that trophy are now very low due to Messi’s improbability to play the game.
Aaron West weighs in on game-changing impact of Messi’s absence
Lionel Messi is currently injured, having sustained it during the recent 4-0 win against Toronto FC. He was substituted in the first half and he is now a major doubt to play in the final against the Houston Dynamo.
Manager Tata Martino has given insight on the chances of Messi playing. According to NBC Sports, Messi’s participation will be decided in the final minute. “He doesn’t need surgery or anything like that. It’s just a matter of how much time the player needs to rest in order to play the next game. If it wasn’t a final, we wouldn’t take any risks. But because it’s a final, there is a chance we take that risk.”
“We are going to wait on Leo until the last moment.”
However, one soccer host thinks that Miami have no chance to win if Messi does not feature in the game. The host named Aaron West recently said on CBS Sports Golazo that the Herons have no chance to win without Messi. He said, “If Lionel Messi is not in this match, period, I don’t think they will win.”
It will certainly be a difficult game for Miami, considering Jordi Alba is also injured. Miami may have to play without two important players. This will definitely slim their chances of a victory.
Lionel Messi scored 11 goals in his first 12 appearances
There is a reason why many believe that without Lionel Messi, the team will falter. Since Messi made his debut, he has been bailing the team with important goals or even important assists. He has insane stats for someone who is 36 and has just joined a low-ranked team. The Argentine maestro has scored a total of 11 goals and 5 assists in 12 games so far. Almost all of them were scored in the Leagues Cup, with Messi only scoring a single goal in the MLS.
This means that every 85 minutes, he has scored a goal, and every 58 minutes, he contributes to a goal. Messi is also still unbeaten in every game he has played since joining. When Lionel Messi plays, Inter Miami are simply unstoppable.
Inter Miami will now take on Houston Dynamo tonight in the US Open Cup final, with Lionel Messi hoping to possibly play in order to win his second trophy in the United States.
