Why Lionel Messi is not to blame for Inter Miami vs Hong Kong exhibition match fiasco

Messi sitting out the game was because he picked up an injury and the decision was likely made by the head coach and medical staff
The idea that Messi should have addressed fans to explain is misconceived. He is not an entertainer or a diplomat. His job is to play football – when fit

Cliff Buddle

Published: 11:44am, 8 Feb 2024

Why you can trust SCMP

One of my favourite pursuits after returning to England from Hong Kong has been to attend top flight football matches.

Last Sunday, as Lionel Messi sat rooted to the bench at Hong Kong Stadium, I headed into London to join a vocal crowd of 60,000 at the top-of-the-table clash between Arsenal and Liverpool.

When the teams were announced, several top players were missing. They were injured. Both teams were without their star strikers.

No one thought there was anything unusual or improper about that. It is part of the game. Footballers get injured all the time and their fitness to play – or not play – can vary from day to day.

Messi (right) sits on the Inter Miami bench during the exhibition match in Hong Kong. Photo: AP

The barrage of criticism levelled at Lionel Messi, arguably the world’s greatest player, for his non-appearance in the Inter Miami versus Hong Kong exhibition game is overblown and unfair.

There are many questions to be asked about the debacle. But they should be directed at the organisers, the visiting team and, to some extent, the Hong Kong government.

03:03

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I have great sympathy for the disappointed fans who paid thousands of dollars to see their hero play. I was fortunate enough to see Messi perform for Argentina in Hong Kong in 2014. It was memorable.

But there can never be a guarantee that a player will be fit to play. No contract can reasonably provide for that. The South China Morning Post, in its reporting, warned weeks in advance that Messi might not play, given his team’s busy preseason schedule.

Footballers almost always want to be on the pitch. They hate sitting on the bench. The decision is not usually theirs to make. It is up to the head coach, in consultation with the team’s medical staff, to decide.

Fans react to Messi’s non-appearance during the exhibition match in Hong Kong. Photo: AP

Messi’s explanation, from a football perspective, makes sense. He picked up an injury. Unfortunately, on the day itself, the injury troubled him and he was unfit to play.

Inter Miami could have done a much better job of communicating this and in engaging with Hong Kong fans while in the city. Why was Messi named as a substitute if unfit to play? They let themselves down.

But the idea that Messi should have addressed the crowd at the stadium to explain his non-appearance is misconceived. That is not his role. He is not an entertainer or a diplomat. His job is to play football – when fit to do so. And he does it very well.

Messi plays for Argentina in the HKFA Centennial Celebration Match – Hong Kong vs Argentina on October 14, 2014. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Hopefully Messi will return to Hong Kong and play. The fans deserve that. Maybe those who bought tickets for Sunday’s game should be allowed in free.

But the biggest problem with this fiasco was the management of expectations. This was a football match, not a Taylor Swift concert. Messi is not to blame.