Lionel Messi has suffered an injury setback and will miss Argentina's next qualifier against Venezuela on September 7. Argentina's captain returned for the first time to play for Argentina after announcing his retirement after the Copa America final loss against Chile. Messi enjoyed a successful return as he scored the winning goal against Uruguay in a 1-0 victory in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifier.
Messi was asked after the game over his injury and he said that his groin is hurting a lot. Argentina coach Edgardo Bauza who started his reign for the South Americans with a win said, "He won't be able to play. We can't take any risks. We must take care of him." The extent of Messi's injury is not yet known which may cause some concern for Barcelona too.
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On his injury scare, Messi confirmed, “My groin hurts a lot but I wanted to be here after all the chaos I created, but saying that I wouldn't return and then saying I would. I don't know if I can be there. My groin hurts a lot. It is messed up and it could get worse. I always want to play, but the truth is that the season is just starting and there are a lot of important matches ahead of us. I'll see what the doctor says and go by how I feel."
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Messi clarified on his retirement controversy too as he claims that he did not deceive anybody when he took his decision after the Copa America Centenario final. He said, "I am very grateful to return to the national team. But I did not deceive anybody when I retired, I felt that. We were very disappointed with what had happened, but after that, I thought better. I had a conversation with the manager, Bauza and the people as well accompanied me through it."
After seven games of the eighteen games, Argentina lead the South American group with Uruguay, Colombia, and Ecuador trailing by just one point. Brazil are just a point behind at fifth. The teams finishing in the top four in this group will secure automatic qualification to the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Fifth-placed team will have to play a two-legged playoff against a team from Oceania.
