Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi won't play in U.S. Open Cup final due to injury

Published Sep. 27, 2023 8:21 p.m. ET

Lionel Messi will not play for Inter Miami in Wednesday's U.S. Open Cup final because of a lingering muscle injury.

Miami coach Tata Martino said the day before the game in Ft. Lauderdale against the Houston Dynamo that Messi, who led Argentina to the World Cup title last December, would be a game-time decision. But the 36-year-old was not included among Inter's available substitutes on Wednesday evening.

Messi, who has 11 goals in 12 games since joining Miami in July on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain, scored for Argentina against Ecuador in a Sept. 8 World Cup qualifier but limped off the field in the second half and subsequently missed the Albiceleste's next match in Bolivia. He also sat out Miami's next MLS game in Atlanta but started last week against Toronto. He lasted less than a half before asking to be removed, though, and then missed Sunday's 1-1 tie at Orlando City.

The hope was that Messi, who last month helped Miami win a League's Cup tournament that included every other MLS club plus all 18 from Mexico's Liga MX, was being rested for Wednesday's finale. But the fact that he's not even on the bench suggests the injury is relatively serious.

It's now hard to imagine Messi playing in Miami's next MLS game, on Saturday against New York City FC. The club, which is five points behind NYCFC for the final playoff berth in MLS's Eastern Conference, has just four more games regular-season games after that.

The League's Cup triumph was the 44th trophy Messi has won in his career, tying him for the most ever with former Barcelona teammates Dani Alves. Messi, whose two assists in last month's Open Cup semifinal win over FC Cincinnati helped put Miami in Wednesday's decider, would stand alone if his teammates can beat Houston without him.

Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports. Before joining FOX Sports in 2021, he was a staff writer with ESPN and Yahoo Sports and he has covered United States men's and women's national teams at multiple FIFA World Cups. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.