Messi skips Argentina’s World Cup training camp due to injuries. Argentina’s star forward Lionel Messi and six other players were noticeably absent from the country’s field training camp at Qatar University on Friday, according to Al Jazeera.
Lionel Scaloni, the head coach, is reportedly wary of taking any chances with additional losses two days after Argentine footballers Joaquin Correa and Nicolas Gonzalez were sent home due to injuries. As a precautionary measure, Scaloni is enclosing star players a day before the World Cup begins, according to Al Jazeera.
According to the Argentine Football Association (AFA), team captain Messi and four other Argentinian national team starters, including midfielders Rodrigo De Paul and Leandro Paredes, defender Nicolas Otamendi and forward Angel di Maria trained separately from the rest of the team and stayed in the gym on Friday.
Lisandro Martinez and Juan Foyth, two other Argentine defenders, also skipped Friday’s training camp, according to the Gulf media network, citing AFA. The team did not specify the exact reasons for the move, but such injury-prevention techniques are common practice, according to Al Jazeera.
Argentina, a two-time World Cup champion, is on a 35-match winning streak as it prepares for the 2022 World Cup.
Argentina is scheduled to play Saudi Arabia in the opening match of the World Cup on November 22. In the group stage, they will also face Mexico on November 26 and Poland on November 30. Messi skips Argentina’s World Cup training camp due to injuries.
