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Argentina 'play down Lionel Messi injury fears ahead of World Cup opener'

Argentina 'play down Messi injury fears ahead of World Cup opener'
© Reuters
Lionel Messi did train with his Argentina teammates on Friday despite not appearing towards the start of the session, according to a report.

Lionel Messi reportedly did train with his Argentina teammates on Friday despite not appearing towards the start of the session, which led to speculation surrounding his fitness.

The Paris Saint-Germain attacker was not present for the start of Friday's training session, which took place in front of approximately 400 journalists.

Messi's absence led to suggestions that he was carrying an injury, which would have made him a doubt for his side's tournament opener against Saudi Arabia on November 22.

However, according to Ole, the 35-year-old started the session in the gym alongside Rodrigo De Paul, Leandro Paredes, Angel Di Maria and Nicolas Otamendi, before joining his teammates later on.

The report claims that Messi emerged once the media had left after 15 minutes, and there are no concerns over his fitness for the team's World Cup opener.

Lionel Messi in action for Paris Saint-Germain on November 2, 2022© Reuters

Messi has been in impressive form for PSG during the 2022-23 campaign, scoring 12 goals and registering 14 assists in 19 appearances in all competitions.

The forward has managed seven goals and 10 assists in 13 Ligue 1 appearances, in addition to netting four goals and registering four assists in five Champions League outings.

Messi made his 165th appearance for Argentina on Wednesday, scoring once and providing an assist in a 5-0 victory over the United Arab Emirates in a friendly.

The experienced attacker played the full 90 minutes of the contest, which saw Argentina make it five straight wins in all competitions.

Lionel Messi in action for Argentina on September 27, 2022© Reuters

After facing Saudi Arabia on November 22, Argentina will take on Mexico and then Poland in the group stage of the competition.

The White and Sky Blues have won the World Cup on two previous occasions, lifting the trophy in 1978 before triumphing once again eight years later.

Argentina were also runners-up at the 2014 edition of the tournament, but they disappointed in Russia last time out, only reaching the last-16 stage of the competition.

Lautaro Martinez, Paulo Dybala, Papu Gomez and Marcos Acuna also all trained with the team on Friday despite concerns over knocks.

Messi has scored 91 goals for Argentina, including six goals in 19 outings at the World Cup, but he only found the back of the net on one occasion in four appearances at the 2018 competition.

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