Lionel Messi starts: Confirmed lineups for Inter Miami vs Atlanta United in MLS

Inter Miami have just two games left in the Major League Soccer regular season. The first comes this Saturday against Atlanta United at Chase Stadium, and unexpectedly, Lionel Messi will feature in the match.

The forward had joined Argentina’s training camp earlier this week ahead of their upcoming friendlies against Venezuela and Puerto Rico. However, on Friday night, it was announced that Leo would not take part in the first match and would instead be a spectator in the stands at Hard Rock Stadium.

Indeed, Messi watched from the sidelines as his teammates defeated Venezuela 1-0 thanks to a goal from Giovani Lo Celso, without even being on the bench. “It was my decision for Leo not to play,” explained head coach Lionel Scaloni after the match. “We wanted to test Lautaro (Martinez) and Julian (Alvarez)… We hope Leo can be available for the next game.”

With that in mind, speculation quickly grew over Messi’s potential involvement in Inter Miami’s match on Saturday. Being in the same city and having not played a single minute for Argentina, the forward is available and will be on the starting lineup against Atlanta United.

Inter Miami confirmed lineup

While the Herons are no longer in contention for the Supporters’ Shield, their two remaining regular-season games still carry significance. If they win both—against Atlanta United and Nashville SC—they will secure second place in the Eastern Conference, which would give them a more favorable playoff path.

With that goal in mind, head coach Javier Mascherano will field his best available XI: Rocco Rios Novo; Marcelo Weigandt, Gonzalo Lujan, Tomas Aviles, Jordi Alba; Baltasar Rodriguez, Sergio Busquets, Yannick Bright, Tadeo Allende; Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi.

Atlanta United confirmed lineup

Unlike Inter Miami, Atlanta United have nothing left to play for this MLS season. They sit second-to-last in the Eastern Conference standings with just 27 points, far from the play-in spots.

Head coach Ronny Deila’s confirmed lineup: Jayden Hibbert; Leo Afonso, Stian Gregersen, Juan Berrocal, Pedro Amador, Dominik Chong Qui; Tristan Muyumba, Cooper Sanchez, Steven Alzate; Emmanuel Latte Lath, Jamal Thiare.