Paris Saint-Germain playmaker Lionel Messi has suffered an injury scare ahead of the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
French Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed the Argentine will miss today’s French Ligue 1 trip to Lorient with an inflamed Achilles tendon.
This may be a major setback for the Argentina national team ahead of the 2022 World Cup as the PSG star was expected to lead the team to the tournament which will kick off on November 20.
However, the club insist it is only a minor injury and he may likey return to action next week, when the team is scheduled to take on the Auxerre in a French Ligue 1 clash.
The game against Auxerre will be the last French Ligue game before the 2022 World Cup kicks off in Qatar.
After the club confirmed that Lionel Messi would likely return in the weekend game, there were projections that he may reach a historic landmark in his football career if he featured in all PSG games except the last game.
PSG’s penultimate French Ligue 1 game before the World Cup was expected to be his 994th football appearance before the 2022 World Cup.
As things stand, it is still unclear whether he will make that 994th appearance by featuring for PSG in the last French Ligue1 match before the World.
If Lionel Messi heads to the World Cup with 994 appearances, making it to the finals of the 2022 World Cup will be his 1000th football match since the beginning of his football career.
If Argentina wins the much-coveted tournament, then the record seven times Ballon d’Or winner will win the World Cup in his 1000th appearance. It will be a legendary and memorable feat.
Lionel Messi, who is the team captain, led the team to their first major international trophy in 2021 since 1993 and will be hoping to repeat the feat in the Qatar 2022 World.
Meanwhile, the Argentina will kick start their World Cup campaign against Saudi Arabia on November 22, two days after the tournament kicks off.
Messi had previously stated that the 2022 World Cup may likely be his last World Cup with the Argentina national team.
However, in an interview with Direct Sports TV, he seemed to be undecided about his planned retirement.
The former Barcelona star stated that his retirement from the national team depend on logical issues of age and the state of his fitness after the World Cup will determine his next step.
Argentina lost the 2014 final to Germany, the closest he has come to lifting the only major trophy that eludes him in his stellar career.
Meanwhile, the new fitness concern is the latest injury he has had to battle off this season.
The forward, who has 12 goals and 14 assists for PSG in all competitions this season, did play the full 90 minutes of PSG’s final Champions League group game away at Juventus on Wednesday.
But after seeing pals Paulo Dybala and Angel Di Maria suffering injuries just before the tournament, the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner is understandably cautious.
He said last month: “Injuries are a worry.
“This is a different World Cup which is played at a different time of the year to previous tournaments and it’s so imminent any little thing that happens to you can force you out.”
Lionel Messi is the captain of the Argentina national team and is expected to lead the team to the tournament. Hence, the coach of the national team, Lionel Scaloni and indeed, the fans of the team, will be praying fervently that Messi is fit enough to be a part of the World Cup party.
