With just three days of rest following a hard-fought victory over Columbus Crew that secured the Supporters’ Shield, Inter Miami now shift their focus to Saturday’s showdown with Toronto FC. During a press conference, coach Gerardo Martino provided some insight into his considerations regarding Lionel Messi’s involvement.
When asked directly about Messi, Martino responded with measured caution: “We have to take into account the accumulation of minutes. In Leo’s case, we understand that this will put him back in soccer rhythm and that is what is happening, but it is not a matter of accumulating fatigue.”
The coach did not confirm during the press conference whether Messi would feature in the starting XI: “We will see in the next few hours what the decision is regarding the team that will play,” he said, hinting that the Argentine striker would probably start on the bench. In fact, reports on Saturday morning indicated that the players who started the midweek match against Columbus Crew did not participate in the full training session. And indeed that was his decision.
Rotation for Inter Miami against Toronto FC
Gerardo Martino finally decided that key players such as Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba would not start the match, and included in the XI players who have had less participation lately: Inter Miami’s starting lineup includes: Oscar Ustari; Robert Taylor, Tomas Aviles, Serhiy Kryvtsov, Noah Allen, Franco Negri; Julian Gressel, David Ruiz, Benjamin Cremaschi, Matias Rojas; and Leonardo Campana.
Lionel Messi celebrates against Columbus Crew
On the bench will be: Drake Callender, Jordi Alba, Ryan Sailor, Diego Gomez, Sergio Busquets, Yannick Bright, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Lawson Sunderland.
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Messi’s packed schedule
A major factor in Martino’s decision is Messi’s demanding schedule in the coming weeks. Following Saturday’s match, the 37-year-old will join Argentina’s national team for the South American World Cup qualifiers, where they will face Venezuela on October 10 and Bolivia on October 15. Just four days later, Messi is expected to be back with Inter Miami for their MLS match against New England Revolution at DRV PNK Stadium.
