Will Lionel Messi play in Inter Miami vs Vissel Kobe friendly after Hong Kong letdown?

Lionel Messi is one of the greatest soccer players of our time, and almost every fan in the world wants to watch him play live. Even if it’s just once, fans can go to great lengths to see the Argentine grace the pitch. Due to him, clubs can garner record attendances at their games, which raises a lot of revenue for them.

Due to this fact, Inter Miami went on a pre-season tour both to boost their revenue and global profile. One of their stops was in Hong Kong, and another is in Tokyo. However, there are complaints from fans regarding the player’s presence in the game.

Is Lionel Messi going to play in Tokyo friendly?

Pre-season friendly games are very important to a club. Aside from a financial perspective, they also allow the coach and players to prepare for the season. However, sometimes star players are left on the bench in order to not get injured. Such was the case in a recent friendly game in Hong Kong between Inter Miami and Hong Kong XI.

But due to injury concerns, Lionel Messi was left on the bench for Inter Miami, and many believed that he could also be absent in the upcoming friendly game in Tokyo. This made the organizers and clubs involved concerned that fans may choose not to come, which could affect ticket sales.

However, Messi himself has decided to allay the fears of his supporters by speaking to the media. In a press conference at the Tokyo hotel where the team is staying, the Miami captain lamented his absence in Hong Kong due to his injury.

He said, “The truth is that the discomfort was still there and it was very difficult for me to play. I can understand that people were looking forward to it and I hope that there will be another opportunity for me to play in Hong Kong.”

While he did not guarantee whether he would play for certain or not, the 36-year-old did provide some positive updates about feeling better. “For tomorrow, I don’t know, we’ll need to see how it goes in training today. We still don’t know if I would be able to or not, but I feel much better than I did a few days ago and really want to be able to play.”

Hong Kong was disappointed with Lionel Messi letdown

The game between Hong Kong XI and Inter Miami was highly anticipated, with many fans spending lots of money and travelling from far away to see Lionel Messi play live. But they were understandably disappointed when they saw Messi sit out the whole game on the bench.

Many of the fans immediately vented their frustrations, booing both the player and David Beckham, who is co-owner of Inter Miami. One fan was even seen kicking a cardboard cutout of Messi, which went viral. Fans in the stadium were heard screaming for refunds and justice.

Even the government got involved with MSEC, who are the board for soccer activities in Hong Kong. They released a statement in which they expressed their disappointment and said that they would be taking action against the organizers. Furthermore, they have cut off funding for all future friendly matches that the organizers have planned.

Hopefully, Tokyo fans will not be disappointed and get to see Lionel Messi play in their city, which is against J1 League club Vissel Kobe tomorrow.