- Messi in training
- No decision yet on if he travels
- Has missed last three matches
WHAT HAPPENED? Lionel Messi was spotted and filmed by the Miami Herald at Inter Miami's training session on Tuesday morning. The Argentine participated in full-team training, and per head coach Tata Martino, could be available for Wednesday's fixture.
"In the case of Leo Messi, we have to look at the training," Martino said. "We will see if he is not at risk and we will evaluate whether it is convenient for him to travel or not travel. Messi could start working with the team today or tomorrow, but tomorrow is match day. Maybe today he does the first part of the warm-up, but only to have training according to his needs. The rest of the team will do much lighter training due to the number of games they are playing."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: The Herons are in a precarious spot heading into the final stretch of the regular season. They're only four points off a playoff spot, but there are seven teams fighting neck-and-neck for the two final spots available given their place in the standings. Just five points separate eighth from 14th in the Eastern Conference, and only two of those eight will make the post-season.
Inter Miami will likely need to win-out the remainder of the regular season to guarantee a post-season spot, whereas point dropped could doom their play-off hopes.
WHAT NEXT FOR MESSI? The Argentine attacker will be a game-time decision for Inter Miami on Wednesday evening, when the Herons travel to Chicago to take on the Fire in a reportedly sold-out match. There's expectation that over 60,000 fans will attend.