Lionel Messi was notably absent from Inter Miami‘s matchday roster during their goalless draw against Charlotte FC in Saturday’s MLS regular-season game at Bank of America Stadium.
The Argentine captain had played for Inter Miami on Wednesday against Nashville SC during the first leg of the Concacaf Champions Cup round of 16, also ending in a 0-0 draw at GEODIS Park. Messi participated in the full match, leading to Miami’s decision to rest him for Saturday’s game in preparation for the second leg against Nashville on Wednesday.
In Messi’s absence, veteran Uruguayan striker Luis Suárez made his first start of the season.
Messi’s Miami and Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul was also missing from both the starting lineup and substitutes.
“These decisions are made collectively by the coaching staff,” said Miami assistant coach Javier Morales to reporters after the match. “We’ve had a busy schedule with games on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and with an important home match on the horizon, we believed it was the right choice.”
Morales handled post-game media responsibilities because head coach Javier Mascherano was sent off in stoppage time after receiving two quick yellow cards from the referee.
“There seemed to be a misunderstanding; Mascherano was communicating with one of the players and was somewhat out of line, but the referee appeared to be overly sensitive,” Morales explained. “In matches like these, especially with younger players, there’s a need for coaching. Javier was very involved on the sidelines, and unfortunately, it resulted in a red card.”
Both Messi and De Paul had previously participated in Inter Miami’s match against Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium in September 2025, where the team lost 3-0.
The stadium’s artificial turf didn’t factor into Mascherano’s selection of players that day, as Messi, Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, and De Paul all played in that regular-season fixture.
Looking ahead, Miami aims to regroup as they strive for a place in the Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinals.
While Mascherano acknowledged the importance of the competition for Inter Miami, he maintains that all tournaments are to be treated with equal importance throughout the season.
“We’re not a team that picks and chooses which competitions to prioritize; we’re committed to competing in all of them,” he stated earlier in the week. “The Champions League is the only tournament we typically participate in that we’re missing this year, and it creates a lot of anticipation among us all.”
“However, we must avoid letting this become an obsession. It’s great to be excited, but we shouldn’t allow it to consume us.”
Saturday’s draw left last year’s MLS Cup champions with seven points from their first four matches of the 2026 season.