“It’s probably not the last time that will happen” – Lionel Messi opens up on being substituted against Ecuador
Lionel Messi has reacted to his substitution following Argentina's 1-0 victory against Ecuador in their World Cup Qualifier on Thursday (September 7).
The nation's skipper was withdrawn in the 89th minute following his stunning free-kick, which broke the deadlock in the 78th minute. Messi launched yet another stunning shot from the edge of the box to mark his 104th international goal.
Despite carrying forward his form from his time with Inter Miami in the USA, the Barcelona legend was replaced by midfielder Exequiel Palacios for the final stages of the tie. Citing fatigue to be the reason for his substitution, Messi said after the match (via All About Argentina):
"I came out because I was a bit tired. It's probably not the last time that will happen [come out during the last minutes of the game]. It’s all good, I’m fine."
The 36-year-old isn't getting younger and has had to deal with a heavy fixture load with his MLS club since arriving in the summer. Messi has had to endure a total of 11 matches in just over a month, starting nine of these fixtures and coming off the bench in the rest.
The former Paris Saint-Germain forward sent a clear message on potentially coming off in further games as well. Argentina will take on Bolivia in their next match on Tuesday (September 12).
"Everyone always wants to beat Argentina" - Lionel Messi on pressure after being crowned world champions
Lionel Messi further shared his thoughts with the media on Argentina's 1-0 World Cup Qualifier victory against Ecuador. The Barcelona legend feels that his side requires improvement every second of the way and cannot afford to relax.
After the South American nation were crowned World Cup winners in Qatar last year, Messi believes other countries would want to beat them even more.
He said (via Reuters):
"We played against a great team, with good players and physically strong. Everyone always wants to beat Argentina and even more so now that we are the world champions. We can't relax, we have to improve on what we've been doing.
"The objective is to qualify for the World Cup again. We really enjoyed what we did but we have to look ahead."
The forward is now tied with former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez for most goals netted in World Cup qualifying (29 goals each). The two shared the pitch on 258 occasions for the Blaugrana.