The 36-year-old Lionel Messi was not able to play in two recent matches. One was for his club, Inter Miami, and the other was for his country, Argentina. He missed the game where Argentina won in the World Cup qualifiers against Bolivia on September 12th, and also the game where Inter Miami lost 5-2 to Atlanta United last Saturday.
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Messi made a comeback for Inter Miami on Wednesday night, but he couldn't stay on the field for long because he had some trouble with his leg. He had to leave the game in the 37th minute. Surprisingly, Inter Miami did really well without him and won 4-0. This victory brought them closer to securing a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference of Major League Soccer.
The player who replaced Messi, Robert Taylor, had an outstanding performance with two goals and an assist. But everyone was worried about Messi's health.
Inter Miami's coach, Gerardo "Tata" Martino, explained that Messi had an old injury that had been bothering him since his time with the national team.
Messi, who has won the Ballon d'Or seven times, had missed the previous two matches due to tiredness. But now, it seems like he has some problems with his leg. When Messi left the field, the score was still tied, and he went to the locker room before halftime after spending a short time on the bench.
On the same day, Inter Miami faced another setback as Jordi Alba, another important player who joined the team midseason, had to leave the game in the 34th minute, just before Messi had to go off the field.