36-year-old Lionel Messi has gone viral in recent weeks, but this time for the wrong reason, as the ex-Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain football player did not feature in the Inter Miami CF-Hong Kong friendly match, causing heated scenes in the full-house Hong Kong stadium a few days ago and during the aftermath of the game.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup-winning skipper from Argentina, who carried a hamstring injury with him in that Hong Kong friendly game, stay sidelined throughout the 90 minutes plus added time, and reasons cited for the outburst of refunds by fans that travelled far and spent big to watch Messi play was due to miscommunications between the Inter Miami CF camp as well as the management personnel of the Hong Kong friendly. Speaking to the media for the first time after the Hong Kong friendly incident, Messi has decided to speak about his absence from that Hong Kong friendly after his Major League Soccer side arrived at Japan for another friendly match against Vissel Kobe.
What Did the Local Leaders Said About Messi’s Absence in the Hong Kong Friendly?
Leaders in Hong Kong have been pressing Messi and the Inter Miami camp to respond to the Argentine’s actions in the Hong Kong friendly. Kevin Yeung, Hong Kong’s culture minister, had tried to push Inter Miami to bring the ex-Barca and PSG man Messi onto the pitch for playing or speech-giving purposes during the Hong Kong friendly. “We reiterate our request for Messi to play in the match, about 10 minutes before the match ended. The organiser confirmed that Messi could not play. We therefore immediately requested them to explore other remedies, such as Messi appearing in the field to interact with his fans, and receiving the trophy. Unfortunately, as you all see, this did not work out.”
Chief Executive of Hong Kong John Lee Ka-chiu went on to add: “What is important in this case is, first of all, we will keep on urging the organiser to explain to the public in detail what actually happened, what were the details of the agreement between them and the team. And also why, in the course of the communication of the government, despite all the suggestions and demands made by the government, nothing materialised.”
More on Lionel Messi: The 2023 Ballon d’Or: Argentina’s and Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi to Secure His Record Eighth Honour
Messi Broke Silence on His No-Show in the Hong Kong Friendly
During a pre-match conference for that friendly between J1 League’s Vissel Kobe and Inter Miami, Messi finally gave his thoughts over his absence in the Hong Kong friendly game a few days earlier, and the 2022 FIFA World Cup-winning captain defended his actions. “Unfortunately, in football, things can happen in any game, that we may have an injury. It happened to me. I couldn’t play in the Hong Kong match, and it was a shame because I always wanted to participate. I wanted to be there, and even more so when it came to these games when we travelled so far and people were so excited to see our matches,” said Messi.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner La Pulga continued to add these on the Hong Kong friendly and his plans going forward in 2024: “I hope we can return and we can play another game and I can play, as I do whenever I can. But the truth is that it is a shame that I was not able to participate. The truth is that I feel very good compared to a few days ago, and depending on how that (Training) goes [I could play on Wednesday]. If I’m honest, I still don’t know if I will be able to play or not, but I feel much better and I really want to be able to play.”
Who Won the Inter Miami-Hong Kong Friendly?
The Inter Miami CF side without Messi and Uruguayan striker Luis Suárez managed to defeat their opponents in the Hong Kong friendly, with goals from Robert Taylor, Lawson Connery Sunderland, Leonardo Campana and substitute Ryan Sailor cancelling out Henri Anier’s equaliser. It is worth mentioning that the 4-1 victory for Inter Miami CF was their first win in the calendar year of 2024, and that triumph snapped a 11-game winless streak in all tournaments in the near past for the Major League Soccer side.
Inter Miami defeat the Hong Kong All-Stars 4-1 to get their first win of preseason 👍 pic.twitter.com/YgnQM33968
— B/R Football (@brfootball) February 4, 2024
After the Hong Kong Friendly Absence, Will Messi Feature in Vissel Kobe Match?
Prior to the Hong Kong friendly, Messi’s Inter Miami CF did not win any of their previous five games in their preseason schedule as well as their 11 games in all competitions. Since they have achieved their first win in a long time, the Major League Soccer outfit will be hosted by Vissel Kobe, a club that Messi’s former teammate at Barcelona Andrés Iniesta played at from 2018 to 2023, at the Japan National Stadium later today, with an aim to strike another victory in as many games. However, the big question surrounding this game will be whether Messi is inserted onto the pitch for a period of time.
In this regard, if you wish to see if Messi, arguably the best player to ever play the sports of football, will be featuring in Vissel Kobe-Inter Miami CF later today, then you should really check out on AsiaSport‘s wonderful live stream channels and anything football matches that the platform can offer without you paying a single cent. Sign up effortlessly via a few steps and you will be enabled to the many perks AsiaSport.com can spoil you with!
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