Messi will be on Inter Miami roster for game vs. Philadelphia Saturday. Here’s an update
Lionel Messi recovered from an adductor strain and will be on the Inter Miami roster for Saturday’s home game against first-place Philadelphia Union, according to coach Javier Mascherano.
It is unknown if he will start or how many minutes he is expected to play, but Mascherano said the Argentine captain will be ready.
“Leo is fine, and if nothing strange happens he will be on the roster for the game,” Mascherano said.
He added that the club will continue to avoid unnecessary risk and take care of Messi, who is “a very special player”, a few months shy of his 38th birthday and has a long year ahead with the MLS schedule, Concacaf Champions Cup, Club World Cup and Leagues Cup.
Inter Miami travels to Los Angeles early next week for the Champions Cup quarterfinal first leg against LAFC on Wednesday night, returns to Chase Stadium Sunday April 6 for a league game against Toronto, and then plays LAFC at home three days later in the second Champions Cup leg.
Messi did not play for Argentina in the World Cup qualifying matches against Uruguay and Brazil over the past week, choosing instead to stay home and recuperate from the injury he sustained during Miami’s road win against Atlanta United.
He played every preseason match and the first three games of the regular season but then missed three games in a row due to leg muscle strain. He returned in the second leg of the Concacaf Champions Cup against Cavalier SC and played the 90 minutes against Atlanta United.
Goalkeeper Drake Callender, a starter the past three years and a team co-captain, has yet to play this season after suffering an adductor injury while with the U.S. national team in January. He is in full training and was on the roster for the Atlanta game, but Rocco Rios Novo started in place of Oscar Ustari, who had been starting in Callender’s absence but was serving a red card suspension.
“We hope to see Drake on the field soon,” Mascherano said. “Obviously, it’s been a long time since he last played. I heard people thought it was strange that Drake was on the bench for Atlanta, and we started Rocco, but for me, that is normal. Drake hasn’t played a match in five months. We must take it slowly and we will find the right time to give him minutes because we know he needs it and for us, at some point this season he will be an important player for us.”
Asked if there was any chance Callender would start any upcoming games, Mascherano said “For [Saturday], no. But surely sooner rather than later he will have minutes.”
Winger Tadeo Allende will not be available, as he has an unspecified leg injury from the Atlanta game. Robert Taylor is back from a hamstring injury.
Inter Miami was one of the two teams from the East that did not have a game during the FIFA break, so it dropped below the Union in the standings. Philadelphia has 12 points through five games and Miami has 10 points over four games.
Philadelphia’s first-year coach Bradley Carnell said it is difficult to know what to expect from Inter Miami.
“You can look at all the data, look at the games, but when they are in the games, they are serial winners,” he said. “They have a mentality that they can step up to any game model you present. If they have to press, they will press. If they have to chase, they will chase. If they have to do something they don’t usually do, they will do it, and more so this year under Mascherano.”
He stressed that Miami presents a big challenge with or without Messi.
“Pick your poison,” Carnell said. “With Messi, you know what you’re going to get. If he’s off, they have a lot of youth, exuberance and energy and that can be tough to contain, as well.”
Both teams have players back from international duty. For Miami, they are Telasco Segovia (Venezuela), Noah Allen (Greece Under 21), Benja Cremaschi (USA U20) and Santiago Morales (USA U18).
Union’s national team players are Tai Baribo (Israel), Andre Blake (Jamaica), Jesus Bueno (Venezuela), Daniel Gazdag (Hungary), Danley Jean Jacques (Haiti), Neil Pierre (U.S. U-18) and Frankie Westfield (U.S. U-20).
Miami will have to continue to play organized, disciplined defense to contain a Philadelphia team that has scored 12 goals over five games. Baribo leads the Union with six goals. Jovan Lukic has two.
“Philadelphia is off to a great start, they are very strong offensively, have scored a lot of goals, the four up front are intense and aggressive,” Mascherano said. “They are a physical, aggressive team that will come here and try to give us problems.”
Allen Obando, the Ecuadorean 18-year-old forward who signed with Inter Miami last week, is awaiting visa paperwork and will not be available Saturday. He is training on his own, and has not yet practiced with the team.
“The quicker we can incorporate him, the better,” Mascherano said. “Now starts another stretch with a lot of games where we need our entire roster to be available because we know that with more players we are a stronger team.”
“He’s a central forward, a young player with a lot of potential with things to improve. He will bring us freshness in a position where we have used Luis [Suarez] an awful lot and have not given him a chance to rest. Clearly, what we hope is that he can generate internal competition and take advantage of having a forward like Luis Suarez, with his experience, who can show him a lot and we can see him reach his potential.
How to Watch: Inter Miami vs. Philadelphia Union kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale and will be shown on Apple TV MLS Season Pass.
This story was originally published March 28, 2025 at 1:51 PM.