Inter Miami will face this Saturday Vancouver Whitecaps in the continuity of the MLSbut it will not have several of its figures: Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez and Sergio Busquets stayed in Florida and did not travel to Canada. This Friday, Tata Martino explained the reasonsgiven that they are not injured.
Read also: The unusual decision of Inter Miami’s next rival in the absence of Lionel Messi
“Yesterday we trained and when we finished we met with the coaching staff, then with the footballers and at that time we determined that they were not going to be†, the Inter Miami coach began at a press conference. In this way they avoided the long trip to Vancouver.
Why Lionel Messi will not play against Vancouver Whitecaps in MLS
“The resolution does not seem strange to me because there are other teams that do the same. We understand that Lionel Messi has revolutionized the league, but we have to see the health of the team†, he continued. Tata’s statements were published by journalist José Armando on his X account @Jarm21.
“The reasons behind this were the calendar we had ahead of us this week,†he added. The Florida team will host Atlanta United on Wednesday and Saint Louis City SC next Saturday. “We understand the frustration of the people (of Vancouver) but We have to look after the club and our players.†, he stated.
Messi’s absence in Canada angered the Whitecaps directors
This situation generated anger in the leadership of the Canadian team, who had promoted the match as a chance for their fans to see the Argentine star in action.
That disappointment was also shared by journalist Dylan Dyson who made a strong post on his social networks. “To Canadian markets They were sold the promise of seeing the best player of all time live, and many paid the price of a very expensive ticket to do so. So far it’s been a disappointment†.
Tata did not hold anything back and was very clear: “It is not our responsibility to ensure that your business is not affected by who attends the game. The excitement of seeing Messi has always been like this since his time at Barcelona. Here in MLS, this has become even greater.â€
And he closed: «Where else in the world do rival fans demand that the team announce the presence or absence of a particular player before games?»