Lionel Messi scored a goal and made an assist before leaving the field due to a leg injury as Inter Miami beat Nashville 3-1 in the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup round-of-16 match.
Report informs via foreign media that Messi found his former Barcelona teammate, Luis Suarez, in stride for a goal that opened scoring in the eighth minute. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner then added a first-half goal to give Inter Miami an early 2-0 lead on Wednesday night.
The Argentinian great was substituted in the 50th minute and coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino later revealed that Messi was dealing with a mild leg injury that started bothering him during the game, so he was taken off as a precaution.
“He is overloaded in the right posterior,” Martino said through a translator. “We tried to see if he could go further along [in the game], but it was bothering him so we preferred to have him get out of the game.”
Messi had rested during Sunday’s 3-2 loss to Montreal, which is the only game he has missed this season.
Martino said Messi will likely miss the team’s Major League Soccer (MLS) match on Saturday against DC United.
“I don’t want to risk it,” Martino said.
Messi was replaced on Wednesday by Robert Taylor, who scored in the 63rd minute to give Inter Miami a 3-0 lead.