(Fort Lauderdale) Lionel Messi was back in the Inter Miami lineup on Wednesday, but it didn’t last long.
Messi was substituted in the 37th minute of his team’s match against Toronto FC after spending a few minutes analyzing what appeared to be a leg problem. He stretched during the action, finally removing his captain’s armband. When play stopped, he left the match.
Inter Miami still dominated their opponent 4-0. Robert Taylor scored two goals, while Facundo FarÃas and Benjamin Cremaschi scored the other goals for the team.
Messi didn’t even wait to leave the field to unlace his shoes, pull down his socks and remove his shin guards.
Messi had missed two matches (for Inter Miami and for Argentina) recently. In both cases, fatigue was mentioned to explain his absence. Messi was not available to the media in recent days to discuss his state of health.
Wednesday’s match was the first of six in 17 days for Inter Miami.
Messi played 12 matches with his new team, including the League Cup and non-Major League Soccer (MLS) matches. He has 11 goals and five assists, including one goal and two assists in four MLS games.