PSG star man Lionel Messi has been left out of Argentina’s upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Colombia to allow the forward to rebuild his match fitness at Paris Saint-Germain as he recovers from coronavirus.
Messi is yet to feature in a game for PSG since a 1-1 draw at Lorient in Ligue 1 on Dec. 22.
With Argentina having already qualified for the World Cup, head coach Lionel Scaloni announced his 27-man squad Wednesday, leaving Messi at home in Paris.
The Argentina captain tested positive for COVID-19 during the Christmas holidays and returned to Paris from his native Rosario with a negative test Jan. 5.
Messi, 34, said in an Instagram post last week that it took him “much longer” to recover from coronavirus than he expected.
PSG sporting director Leonardo criticised Scaloni in November for selecting Messi for the last international window, arguing the forward was not fit to play for the team after having previously missed several games with knee and hamstring pains.
Scaloni responded, saying he understood PSG’s frustrations over Messi’s busy calendar but adding that his national team had a right to call up the player.
Messi, who finished second behind Robert Lewandowski for FIFA’s The Best award Monday, is expected to return on Sunday to play in a Ligue 1 clash with Reims.
He has scored six goals in 16 matches for PSG this season since he left La Liga team Barcelona on free transfer in August.
Messi has featured in all 14 World Cup qualifiers for Argentina, starting in all but one — he came on as a substitute in a 1-0 win at Uruguay on Nov. 13.
Argentina will play at Chile on Jan. 27 and host Colombia on Feb. 1.
Scaloni’s side have taken 29 points from 13 games and are second in the standings, six points adrift of group leaders Brazil and six points clear of third-place Ecuador.
Source: ESPN
