Lionel Messi, after health question marks stemming from the MLS clash between Inter Miami and Philadelphia Union, returned to match action and scored in Argentina's final warm-up match before the World Cup. The defending champions beat Puerto Rico 3:0 on Tuesday, June 10, in Auburn Island (sic), with the thirty-eight-year-old captain coming on as a substitute and converting from the penalty spot. SITA ↗
Messi had previously not featured in the warm-up match against Honduras, which Argentina won 2:0 on Saturday, June 7, at Kyle Field Stadium in Texas. He had remained on the bench after asking to be substituted in the 73rd minute of Inter Miami's match against Philadelphia Union due to leg pain. Miami won that match 6:4, with the first half ending 4:4, and Luis Suárez was a standout figure with a hat-trick. aktuality.sk ↗
New articles also highlight the broader impact of Messi's arrival at Inter Miami. His time in MLS has significantly boosted the popularity of soccer in the USA, and the so-called Messi effect is described as important promotion for the country, which is co-hosting the World Cup together with Canada and Mexico. Robert Lewandowski's interest in MLS fits into the same context, as after leaving Barcelona he is reportedly set to negotiate with Chicago. STVR (Spravy) ↗
Ahead of the tournament's start, Argentina is also dealing with other personnel issues. Emiliano Martínez, Gonzalo Montiel, Leandro Paredes, and Nico Paz were missing from the preparations, while Leonardo Balerdi had to withdraw from the tournament. Messi is in the squad for the tournament in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, which began on June 11 with a match between Mexico and South Africa. If he plays, it will be his sixth World Cup, and Argentina enters Group J as the clear favorite. idnes.cz ↗
Note: the source text names the opponent in the first paragraph as "Auburn Island," which doesn't correspond to a known venue — I translated it literally as given, but you may want to verify this against the source.
Messi effect boosts MLS ahead of the World Cup
This summary was generated by artificial intelligence. It may contain inaccuracies. Please verify information in the original sources below.
Sources (15)
Fußball: Klose rechnet mit Verlust seines Torrekords bei der WM
Tagesspiegel
| 04:21 13.06.
Veteráni Messi, Ronaldo a Modrič majú pred sebou posledné MS. Stane sa niekto z nich majstrom sveta? Aké majú šance?
SITA
| 12:50 11.06.
BOOM MS26: Messi spopularizoval soccer a MLS
teraz.sk
| 12:00 10.06.
Lionel Messi zmenil futbal v zámorí. Jeho príchod spustil boom MLS, teraz bude v centre pozornosti na MS
STVR (Spravy)
| 10:00 13.06.
Klose očakáva pokorenie jeho gólového rekordu: „Raz to musí prísť“
teraz.sk
| 09:51 13.06.
Hamšík zažil strop na MS 2010, súčasný šampionát bude na top úrovni. Calzonu bránil, s Weissovcami má dobré vzťahy – FOTO
SITA
| 18:30 11.06.
Ingyen tévét osztogatnak Argentínában azoknak, akiknek elutasították az amerikai vízumkérelmüket
Telex
| 15:31 11.06.
Ingyentévét ad egy argentin vállalat a foci-vb-ről lemaradt szurkolóknak
HVG
| 13:24 11.06.
Lionel Messi figyelmeztette az argentin válogatott világbajnoki kihívóit
Index.hu
| 12:23 11.06.
Fußball-Weltmeisterschaft: Shakira, Gewitter, Curaçao: Das muss man zum WM-Start wissen
Tagesspiegel
| 03:32 11.06.
La hora del relevo en el Olimpo de las favoritas: el adiós de Messi y Cristiano, el testigo de Mbappé y Vinicius, con Kane de invitado
El Mundo
| 12:49 10.06.
Lionel Messi góljával olyan rekordot döntött meg, aminek aligha örül
Index.hu
| 09:16 10.06.
Fußball-WM: Weltmeister Argentinien schießt sich warm mit Messi-Rekord
Tagesspiegel
| 07:38 10.06.
Naskočil, skóroval. Messi už je zdravý, v generálce pomohl Argentině zdolat Island
idnes.cz
| 06:59 10.06.
J-skupina MS26: Jasným favoritom je obhajca z Argentíny
teraz.sk
| 14:40 09.06.
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