After the Hong Kong trouble, Lionel Messi also leaves his place in Japan open

Football star Lionel Messi explained to disappointed fans in Hong Kong that he was missing his club Inter Miami’s friendly match against a local Hong Kong team because of an injury. “Unfortunately in football something can happen in every game and you can get injured,” said the 36-year-old Argentine on Tuesday at a press conference in the Japanese capital Tokyo. He previously felt he had a problem in his groin and an examination then showed swelling. It was not possible for him to play.

The multiple “World Footballer” sat on the bench during Inter Miami’s 4-1 win in the Chinese Special Administrative Region on Sunday, drawing the anger of many fans who had come to see him play. In truth, he was unlucky, said Messi. “It’s a shame because I always want to play, I want to be there, and especially when we travel so far and people are so happy to see us.”

“I feel better already”

The Hong Kong government also complained after the game. Sports secretary Kevin Yeung said there had been contractual assurances that Messi would play at least 45 minutes provided there were no safety and health concerns. Many of the approximately 38,000 football fans in the stadium in Hong Kong booed and demanded their entrance fees back. They had paid up to 115 euros for a ticket to see their idol and were bitterly disappointed. This could now be repeated in Japan, where ticket prices are even higher than in Hong Kong.

The US club Inter Miami from Major League Soccer is currently on a tour of Asia. The next game is against Vissel Kobe in Japan on Wednesday. Whether the Japanese fans will see the Argentine world champion on the field remains uncertain.

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“In truth, I feel much better compared to two days before,” Messi said. It now depends on how the training goes. “To be honest, I still don’t know whether I can play or not,” he told the press in Tokyo. “But I really, really want to.”