Lionel Messi has passed on his support to Enzo Fernandez and Cristian Romero for Argentina's upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil after withdrawing from the squad with an injury.
The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner was named in the 2022 World Cup winners' initial 33-man squad for the CONMEBOL qualification double header later this month but was forced to withdraw from the action after picking up a muscle injury when in action for Inter Miami against Atlanta United on Sunday.
Messi was due to be in action with Fernandez of Chelsea and Romero of Tottenham in the international break but has now revealed that he will support his team-mates from home.
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Writing on his Instagram story on Tuesday, Messi said: "I’m sad to miss these important games Uruguay and Brazil with Argentina.
“I really wanted to play for the national team but a small injury means I need to rest for a bit, so I can’t be there. I’ll be supporting and cheering from here like any other fan. Let’s go, Argentina!”.
Lionel Scaloni's side are currently top of the World Cup qualification standings for the CONMEBOL region, with eight wins from 12 games. However, their next game comes against Marcelo Bielsa's Uruguay, who are five points behind them in second.
After that, they wrap up the March international break with a clash against Brazil on home soil before finishing their campaign later this year with games against Chile, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador.
Goalkeepers : Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa), Geronimo Rulli (Olympique Marseille) and Walter Benitez (PSV Eindhoven)
Defenders : Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Gonzalo Montiel (River Plate), Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur), German Pezzella (River Plate), Leonardo Balerdi (Olympique Marseille), Juan Foyth (Villarreal), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), Facundo Medina (Lens), Nicolas Tagliafico (Olympique Lyonnais) and Francisco Ortega (Olympiakos)
Midfielders : Leandro Paredes (AS Roma), Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea), Rodrigo De Paul (Atletico Madrid), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Giovani Lo Celso (Real Betis), Maximo Perrone (Como), Giuliano Simeone (Atletico Madrid), Benjamin Dominguez (Bologna) and Thiago Almada (Olympique Lyonnais)
Forwards : Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United), Nicolas Gonzalez (Juventus), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Nicolas Paz (Como), Claudio Echeverri (Manchester City), Paulo Dybala (AS Roma), Julian Alvarez (Atletico Madrid), Lautaro Martínez (Inter Milan), Santiago Castro (Bologna) and Angel Correa (Atletico Madrid).