Messi had to go through a “mortifying” tour with Inter Miami.
On Sunday, more than 40,000 fans packed Hong Kong Stadium (China) to watch Lionel Messi play football. However, from joy, the crowd turned to disappointment when David Beckham – President of Inter Miami – confirmed that the Argentine superstar could not play football.
The tour did not go as planned
Booing echoed throughout the field. It’s easy to understand this feeling coming from the fans. They have to spend hundreds of dollars to own a ticket. Many people even have to travel great distances to see their idol Messi play football with their own eyes. However, that didn’t happen. Many people felt cheated and asked for a refund.
Many others directed their anger towards Messi even though the 2022 World Cup champion was also pushed into a passive position in this incident. A video that is spreading rapidly on social networks captures the image of a fan using his foot to break Messi’s advertising board. “Inter Miami’s tour has officially hit bottom,” Daily Mail commented.
Messi could not play in the match on February 4
Messi has muscle problems and cannot play to protect his career. Absence due to injury is unavoidable. However, Inter Miami clubs and organizers deliberately hid the fact that the Argentine superstar could not play, making fans frustrated. A day earlier, Messi still appeared on the training field and did not show any unusual signs.
Inter Miami’s schedule arrangement is also questioned. On February 2, Inter Miami just had a match against Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia. But right after that, they had to board a plane to Hong Kong (China) to prepare for the competition on the afternoon of February 4.
Not only Messi, Luis Suarez also did not play a single minute. And Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets only came on from the bench.
Coach Gerardo Martino of Inter Miami explained the reason why Messi did not play. “We understand the fans’ disappointment because of Messi’s absence. We hope you will forgive us. Messi’s absence from the field was at the request of the medical team. He faced risk of serious injury if attempting to enter the field.
Martino said he understands the feelings of Hong Kong (Chinese) fans but affirmed that Messi needs to rest to fully recover.
Fans in Hong Kong (China) protested after Messi did not appear in the last match
“We’re sorry. We hope you understand that if the players could have played for a little bit, we would have let them play. But the risk then would have been huge and that’s the reason we gave that decision”.
Ticket refunds will almost certainly not take place. Some believe that Inter Miami is showing signs of taking full advantage of Messi’s name to make money. Recent moves from this club have affected Messi’s reputation.
The match schedule is incredibly dense
Although Messi showed signs of being overloaded at the end of last season, Inter Miami still scheduled an extremely tight tour schedule, lasting for a month. Spanish media estimated that the 36-year-old superstar had to travel more than 23,000 miles during this tour.
Everything started on January 20 when Inter Miami drew 0-0 against El Salvador. 2 days later, the club lost 0-1 to Dallas FC in Texas, USA.
Without having time to rest, the whole team flew more than 7 thousand miles to attend the Riyadh Cup friendly tournament. Here, the whole team competes with Al Hilal before competing with Al Nassr of Al Nassr.
However, there is no reunion between Messi and Ronaldo. CR7 got injured and had to sit out. Messi also had problems and could only play from the 83rd minute. In this match, Inter Miami lost heavily 0-6.
Messi had to come on in the 83rd minute in the match against Al Nassr when the home team was leading 0-6
Next, the whole team will play football in Hong Kong (China) and Japan (February 7) before closing the calendar with a match against Newell’s Old Boys on February 16.
It’s unknown how many minutes Messi can play in the next two friendly matches. From participating in a useful tour to regain his form for the new season, Messi was pushed into a series of unscientifically scheduled competitions.
As a result, he had to play before he had recovered (against Al Nassr), and was turned away by a part of the audience. “Inter Miami’s disastrous tour”, Daily Mail said.
