Switzerland's Sommer Puts Friendships Aside For Italy Clash
June 28 (Reuters) - Argentina will be without talisman Lionel Messi as they head into the final match of Group A against Peru in the Copa America on Saturday.
The eight-times Ballon d'Or winner sustained a thigh injury in Argentina's 1-0 win over Chile.
While he did not participate in Thursday's training, reports suggest he could be fit for Argentina's quarter-final fixture on July 4.
"We will go day-to-day awaiting his evaluation. We also had a matter of overload so in order to avoid questions on that topic, we won't have him for the next match," assistant coach Walter Samuel told reporters on Friday through a translator.
Samuel stood in for head coach Lionel Scaloni at Friday's press conference, as Scaloni is suspended for the Peru match due to Argentina's tardiness after halftime in their two previous matches.
Messi's absence may disappoint fans in Miami, as another sellout was expected.
However, with Argentina already securing a spot in the quarter-finals and looking likely to top the group, precautions are being taken for the Inter Miami star.
Argentina could only lose the top spot to Canada if they suffer a defeat against Peru and Canada clinch a significant victory over Chile.
Argentina are expected to rest several other key players for the Peru match, possibly introducing 19-year-old talents Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United) and Valentin Carboni (Inter Milan) to the field.
"We are not underestimating our opponent," Samuel said. "We are always playing to win."
Peru, on the other hand, need to secure a win against Argentina and hope for Canada to lose to Chile to keep their chances of qualification alive.
Peru's campaign so far has seen them draw 0-0 against Chile and lose 1-0 to Canada, the latter after Miguel Araujo received a red card.
Despite the results, Peru coach Jorge Fossati remains upbeat.
"In the first half, we challenged Canada more than Argentina challenged them and I am talking about Argentina, the current world champions," he said. (Reporting by Field Level Media; Editing by Daniel Wallis)
Gcd7zeszqwz41 ?auto=webp&s=b2e7cfd19413890c594622945214117e3c444b032d605031f283b30c0ee01b85f2111cc8 RebeccaJohnston Cabf83ee789441b08a9943a8e61b70f2 1387c0ba2de89042185d0bd2fa537e73 FH21DJF 607 52 058 1200 ?resize=768015164611f248eb62294d9c15246c8c1 1443fc12b75d40db3d0d2db5b6d61efc 0000971f855a155132d887059baea511 Afe15ee96fa07d9db1a1d60520688d23 2f7d9be0671759182b7fdf003a9bb09c B7537fcdf4910dd0ca25851bc12d459c Maxresdefault Maxresdefault Maxresdefault E17f8f81439dabe3c66be495c1067347 Famiy Room Accent Wall Angle 573e5d902a90d08b0b476a4574e33f34 E150bb176cd723a81785ce7cb532a200 C5746756d7104689906a7345abf83f61 A7eed68293869ea721725b57bc8f8655 66b20ace62fc29752eb30929c389fefc 68df18423a9554f3deb5ea3b646cf344 Cc0c7301bc7dfa4f7f481d6721d15549 C68e7930d98f16c57742bdec95cdfba1 Maxresdefault Maxresdefault E069b144fd19c824021bb67a2586ae48 Strips Of Wood Coupled With Brilliant Lighting Shape This Stunning Geo Accent Wall 60268 A966458b936f496ba970255bd8a95ae8 570bac4cd9051ec33ac4f2bef4c685f4 7fdfa55b8c519bf8043a6b731a816e83 PXL 20210826 191505731 1 1024x1024 41e90b4e92727dbef0e8a89ef699eb42 35257b4ca71a8ba9eddade019b5bb082 DIY Geometric Accent Wall