Sao Paulo: Lionel Messi survived an injury scare ahead of the much-awaited Brazil encounter when he was tackled by Venezuela’s Adrian Martinez during their match a couple of days back during the World Cup qualifiers.
“Leo is fine,” Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni told during the pre-match press conference. The Albiceleste returned to action post their Copa America victory with a 3-1 victory.
What could have been a career-threatning injury, Martinez’s horrific tackle on the six-time Ballon d’Or winner resulted in a direct red card and looked like a major scare for the Argentine captain as he lay writhing in pain.
However, Messi got back into the game couple of minutes later and played the entire match. Messi, who recently moved to Paris Saint-Germain, was seen limping in certain videos as he arrived in Brazil for their upcoming match.
“It was a scare, but luckily he is fine. We will confirm his condition 100 per cent this afternoon when we do fieldwork,” Scaloni added. “(But) whoever plays, Brazil is always an important rival. They’re coming off an incredible positive streak. We’ll face this game with the utmost commitment that it demands of us.
“I have an idea of how the team will line up, but we still haven’t been able to do a training session with those who played against Venezuela. We will probably make some changes,” added Scaloni.
