Sports News
Will Lionel Messi play against the Revolution in Foxborough on Wednesday? It’s looking more likely.
At minimum, Lionel Messi will be in Foxborough.
His Inter Miami posted video on social media Tuesday afternoon of the 38-year-old icon and teammate Luis Suárez (among others) boarding the team’s charter plane for its flight to New England.
Thus passes the first hurdle to the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner as the world’s best player appearing against the Revolution on Wednesday night at Gillette Stadium. With no reported injuries and a gametime temperature forecast to be a pleasant 71 degrees, it appears only workload considerations or some X-factor could keep him off the playing field.
Tickets remain available for the match, with kickoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and starting lineups generally announced about an hour before.
Last April 27, Messi scored twice and had an assist in a 4-1 Inter Miami win in front of 65,612 fans at Gillette. This year’s crowd will fall short of that Revolution franchise record; likely due to lower demand this season, the team only put upper-deck tickets for sale on the western side of the stadium.
Messi played the full 90 minutes for Miami on Saturday in Montreal, scoring twice and adding an assist in his 14th MLS game this season. It was part of a 15-day stretch in which the Herons will play five times, including in Nashville on Saturday.
After Miami’s exit from the Club World Cup on June 29, Messi offered what amounts to a speculative clue about his mindset of wanting to play the entirety of Miami’s league slate.
“Now it’s time to focus on the next round [in] MLS,” he wrote on social media, “and in everything that is to come.”
Inter Miami exited the tournament after being walloped by European champions Paris Saint-Germain, 4-0, which gave Messi five full days of rest before the Montreal game. Inter Miami (9-3-5, 32 points) sits sixth in the Eastern Conference, safely in the playoff places.
The Revolution (6-7-6, 24 points), winless in their last four, are 11th.
Inter Miami has played 29 competitive matches this year, though only 17 in league — multiple fewer than all but one other team — due to its participation in the CONCACAF Champions Cup and Club World Cup. The team played in four CWC matches in June, with the match in Montreal its first in the league since May 31.
Messi was named MLS Player of the Matchday for his Montreal performance, his third such honor this season. He is tied for third for goals contributions (goals plus assists) and leads the league with 0.86 goals per game.
MLS attendance jumped five percent last season, Messi’s first full season in the league.
The Revolution planned ahead for Messi.
A special event train to Foxboro Station will depart from South Station at 5:25 p.m. on Wednesday, with stops at Back Bay and Dedham Corporate Center. The return train departs 30 minutes after the match. Round-trip tickets for $20 are available on the mTicket app.
Parking lots will open early at 3:30 p.m, with stadium gates opening two hours later. Warm-ups are scheduled to begin around 6:40.
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