Lionel Messi lands in Toronto, but no guarantees he'll play
The biggest soccer star in the world is in Toronto.
On Thursday, Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami teammates touched down at Pearson Airport, with a Saturday date set for their match against Toronto FC at BMO Field.
View this post on Instagram
And while the 38-year-old Argentine might be a touch behind his peak, it’s hard to argue he’s anything but still one of the best players on the planet. This year with Miami, he has put up 24 goals in 23 league matches, seemingly en route to his second MVP season in a row.
To help prepare for Messi, Toronto FC has employed another 38-year-old, club legend Sebastian Giovinco, who last played professionally in 2022 for Italian side Sampdoria.
“The quality never leaves you,” Toronto midfielder Jonathan Osorio said, per The Canadian Press. “He helps us a lot, setting us up for whatever rival we have and just showing us different pictures and different scenarios that we might have to deal with.”
Will Messi play in Toronto?
As much as we’d love to give a definitive answer, the best we can do is offer up an educated guess based on his past actions, as well as relay quotes from Inter Miami manager Javier Mascherano.
Miami has five matches left to play in the regular season and currently sit third in the MLS Eastern Conference (top-nine teams make the postseason), with seeding still to play for. Toronto FC, meanwhile, sits 12th and have already been eliminated from playoff contention.
During his only previous MLS visit to Toronto, Messi came on as a second-half substitute, playing a little over half an hour in a 1-0 victory for Miami. He has previously made two trips to Montreal to play against the Impact in MLS league play, but famously skipped a trip to Vancouver for a league match in 2024 due to a congested schedule.
He did, however, make the trip earlier this year to play the Whitecaps at BC Place in a CONCACAF Champions Cup match.
Based on these previous experiences in Canada, if he’s made the trip, he’s tended to at least come on as a substitute.
Mascherano, meanwhile, prefers to keep his cards closer to his chest, telling reporters he’ll make a decision after Friday’s training session, with the official lineup typically announced in the hours leading up to kickoff.
So, while there are no guarantees if you’re thinking of buying a last-minute ticket, it does appear to be a positive sign that Messi has descended upon Toronto.
- You might also like:
- How much tickets cost to see Messi in Toronto