Three of Inter Miami’s four ex-Barcelona stars will not make the cross-country trip to Vancouver for the club’s game against the Whitecaps this weekend.
Whitecaps CEO Axel Schuster told the club’s official website in a statement on Thursday night that “While we haven’t received an official update on the availability of Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, and Sergio Busquets for this weekend, we understand they will not make this trip.”
A source briefed on Inter Miami’s travel plans confirmed that none of Messi, Suarez, or Busquets traveled with the team to Vancouver.
For Lionel Messi, the game will be the seventh missed of the year, with previous absences owing to a leg injury and a few others due to rest. Messi took a knock in Miami’s game against Montreal on May 11. He stayed in the game and played the full 90 but missed the next match, midweek against Orlando City.
The distance between Miami and Vancouver makes it the longest away trip in Major League Soccer, at nearly 2,900 miles in the air or a six-and-a-half-hour nonstop flight. Inter Miami faces a quick turnaround, hosting head coach Tata Martino’s former side Atlanta United at home on Wednesday.
GO DEEPER
Inter Miami defender Nicolás Freire out for season with torn ACL
(Photo: Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)
