This Saturday, the Philadelphia Union and Inter Miami clash in a fixture that could force a major reshuffling at the summit of the Major League Soccer table. A big boost for the Union as they face the defending champions of the Supporters’ Shield is the absence of Miami’s top scorer last season, Lionel Messi.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner missed the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers with Argentina due to a Minor injury sustained against Atlanta United.
Ahead of their game against the Union, the club held an open training session at Chase Stadium, where fans and media were welcomed to the ground to watch the team train. Unsurprisingly, the spotlight was on Messi, who despite partaking in the first part of the trainnig session with the team, had to train separately for the rest of the training.
As they wrapped up one session, a staff member applied ice to Messi’s left abductor area, which was the only worrying sight to the fans who enjoyed the pleasure of watching some of their best players in training.
So far, nothing has been heard from the team or head coach Javier Mascherano. However, it’s one question that we all can be sure he would face when he meets with the press.
It’s been a concerning couple of weeks for the 2022 World Cup winner, who has had to battle a series of injuries intermittently.
How does this impact the Union?
Bradley Carnell and the Union will be looking to capitalize on Messi’s absence, as the potential injury implies that Inter Miami will lack one of their most trusted goal scorers and creators when they play their most important game of the season so far. A win would see the Union affirm their position as league leaders and move five points clear of inter Miami, who have a game in hand.
The Union are coming off a 1-0 win at the Subaru Park against Bradley Carnell’s former team, Saint Louis. Despite going into the game without seven key players, who went to represent their national teams during the international window, the Unions were able to hold on to an early lead that came through Ian Glavinovich’s eighth-minute goal.
With the return of some key players, inluding goalkeeper Andre Blake, Tai Baribo, Daniel Gazdag and others, the Unions have a better chance to steal a win at Miami’s ground
Mandatory Credit: Rich Storry-Imagn Images
