Messi Picks Up Bad Injury On International Duty…See Details

Lionel Messi will be sidelined for a while after
picking up a painful injury while representing
Argentina.
Lionel Messi will miss Argentina’s 2018 World
Cup qualifier in Venezuela on Tuesday after
injuring his groin in Thursday’s 1-0 victory
over Uruguay.
The Barcelona forward scored on his return
from international retirement to send Argentina
top of the South America qualifying group.
Messi said after the game that his groin had
been “hurting a lot”.
Argentina coach Edgardo Bauza said: “He
won’t be able to play. We can’t take any risks.
We must take care of him.”
After seven of the 18 qualifying games
Argentina lead Uruguay, Colombia and Ecuador
by one point with B.razil a point further back
in fifth.
A top-four finish will secure automatic
qualification for Russia 2018, with the fifth-
placed side facing a two-legged play-off
against a team from Oceania – New Zealand,
New Caledonia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea,
Solomon Islands or Tahiti.