After missing five of the past six games owing to a hamstring injury, Lionel Messi returned to action Saturday, playing 35 minutes off the bench in a 1-0 loss to FC Cincinnati that eliminated Inter Miami from MLS postseason contention.
Messi’s only real contributions came when he sailed two free kicks – one in the the 58th minute, the other in stoppage time – well over Cincinnati goalkeeper Roman Celentano’s crossbar.
The 36-year-old Argentine legend, who played more centrally in this game than he had in previous outings for Inter Miami, had managed just 37 minutes in one appearance over the past six games, with Miami winning just once while Messi was absent.
Messi will now depart for World Cup qualifying duty with Argentina in the coming days. The World Cup champion has a home game on Thursday against Paraguay before travelling to Peru on October 17.
It was while on international duty that Messi picked up the injury that ultimately proved fatal to Miami’s playoff hopes.
He will miss Miami’s next game on October 18, a rescheduled contest with Charlotte FC, but could be back in the squad for the rematch in North Carolina three days later on the final day of the regular season.
However, with Miami now playing for nothing more than pride, and Messi’s health at less-than-ideal level, it’s questionable whether Messi will dress in pink again this season.
Martino, however, said he won’t let the final two contests go to waste.
“It is very important the assessment we can do in these remaining games to make the best decisions for next year,” he said.
Messi has 11 goals in 13 matches with Inter Miami. It is 8-1-4 when he plays; seven of those matches were on the team’s run to winning its first trophy by claiming the Leagues Cup, and another was in the U.S. Open Cup semifinal. Inter Miami is 1-3-2 in its six matches without Messi since he joined the club.
Saturday’s loss, along with wins by several teams above Miami in the table, left the South Florida side seven points adrift of the final playoff spot with only two games remaining.
