It is official: the superstar will not make it to the list of the Argentina squad, which will face Morocco in a friendly next week.
Rabat – Following months of rumors and speculation, FC Barcelona issued an official statement to announce news about Lionel Messi’s participation in the Morocco-Argentina friendly game.
In a statement issued on Friday, the football club said that Lionel Messi “did not have the return to international action that he would have wanted, and an injury picked up on Friday night means he will miss Argentina’s game against Morocco” on Tuesday, March 26.
The statement added that the “the FC Barcelona star captained his side and played the entire 90 minutes of the friendly against Venezuela at the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid, but they would lose 1-3.”
Speculation ran wild that the superstar set up several conditions after Argentina announced its plan to play a friendly match against Morocco.
Read Also: Renard: Morocco Should Play Argentina Like It Did Against Portugal, Spain
Some international outlets reported that Morocco’s Royal Football Federation (FRMF) have to pay MAD 10 million to Argentina’s football association for Messi to play in Morocco.
The alleged cost angered Moroccans, some of whom started a boycott campaign on Facebook recently calling for the match to be suspended and the money to be used to improve the lives of those in need.
The match convening Morocco and Argentina will serve as preparation for the Atlas Lions for the coming Africa Cup of Nations championship in Egypt, planned for June 15 to July 13.
The game will take place in Tangier.
