Major League Soccer suspended Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba for Inter Miami’s meeting with FC Cincinnati on Saturday after they controversially missed Wednesday’s MLS All-Star Game.
The league revealed on the day of the match against Liga MX All-Stars that the pair wouldn’t play despite being voted onto the roster by fans and media, leading to speculation that MLS would ban them for one match.
Miami head coach Javier Mascherano announced Friday that Messi and Alba returned to training in anticipation of Saturday’s match against FC Cincinnati. However, MLS belatedly punished the former Barcelona players.