Skipped All-Star Game: Messi very angry about suspension - Boss fears consequences
Lionel Messi has no understanding for his ban in the MLS.
(Photo: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
Even a soccer world champion is subject to the rules in the American league MLS. Lionel Messi has been suspended for one game after opting out of the All-Star Game. The Argentinian is apparently very upset about this.
World Cup winner Lionel Messi reacted "angry" to his suspension for the top Major League Soccer match against FC Cincinnati. "Leo Messi is very upset. I hope it doesn't have long-term consequences," Jorge Mas, billionaire co-owner of Inter Miami, told reporters. Mas is currently negotiating with the Argentinean about a possible extension of his expiring contract.
"Will it affect Messi's perception of the league and its rules? Without a doubt," Mas added: "Lionel is different from everyone else. He wants to compete."
Messi was suspended by the league for his unauthorized absence from the MLS All-Star Game, and teammate Jordi Alba received the same penalty. The duo will therefore be unavailable for Sunday's clash with FC Cincinnati. Cincinnati leads the Eastern Conference, while Miami is seventh in fifth place, seven points behind, but has played three fewer games.
"Miami had a game plan that was not comparable"The 38-year-old Messi had recently played nine games in 35 days, each of which he played the full 90 minutes, including four games at the Club World Cup. "Miami had a schedule unlike any other team," MLS Commissioner Don Garber said on Wednesday. The league will review its guidelines for the future.
However, the rules are still clear. "Any player who fails to participate in the All-Star Game without league approval will be ineligible to participate in their team's next game," MLS quoted its rules as saying. Messi and Alba had withdrawn at short notice from the match against the Mexican Liga MX team, which took place Thursday night in Austin, Texas.
Both players were voted into the MLS squad by fans and the media. Messi had last played the full 90 minutes five times since the Club World Cup, scoring eight goals. His only defeat during that period was a 3-0 loss in Cincinnati.
Source: ntv.de, tno/sid
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