Messi and Alba Sidelined: The Shocking Reason Behind Their Absence Against D.C. United

Inter Miami has the opportunity to knock D.C. United out of MLS Cup Playoff consideration this Saturday evening, though they'll be without Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba.

Both ex-Barcelona superstars and Designated Players were left behind from the journey to Washington, D.C. for this Eastern Conference matchup, having sustained injuries during recent Leagues Cup fixtures that prevented them from participating in complete training sessions this week.

Regarding Messi, this represents an ongoing soft-tissue problem in his right leg, which he first experienced during the Leagues Cup group phase against Necaxa on August 2nd.

Although the 38-year-old managed to rejoin MLS action last weekend coming off the bench versus LA Galaxy, he worsened the injury again, even after delivering a performance that included one goal and one assist in a 3–1 victory over the Western Conference's bottom team.

Following the re-injury, Messi has been training separately from the main squad and was absent from Wednesday's Leagues Cup quarterfinal encounter against Liga MX side Tigres UANL, while Luis Suárez guided the Herons to a 2–1 triumph.

Alba, on the other hand, sustained an injury during the Tigres match and was not included in the D.C. trip to concentrate on his rehabilitation.

Even with multiple absences due to injury concerns, Messi tops the MLS Golden Boot standings with 19 goals across 19 appearances, and sits second league-wide for total goal contributions at 27, just one behind San Diego FC's Anders Dreyer.

Miami begins the weekend positioned fifth in the MLS Eastern Conference with 45 points, and has the potential to climb to third place with a victory, while D.C. would face elimination from playoff contention following a defeat.