Miami HC Calls Out Lionel Messi Ban But Not Seeking Change to MLS All-Star Game Rules

Inter Miami head coach Javier Mascherano took issue with Major League Soccer's decision to suspend both Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba for Saturday's match against FC Cincinnati after the pair sat out the MLS All-Star Game without getting prior approval to do so.

"I have an opinion on what happened but I didn't come here to criticize MLS or change the rule," he told reporters. "We didn't adapt to what happened, beyond the fact that I don't agree with the decision—I don't agree with it at all—but, well, we've adapted. Now I have a question: What would've happened if today's game was an away game? Did that also prevent Leo from playing? Because to fill stadiums and make money, no one complains, right? The thing is, this game was at home. I'll leave that to you."

MLS rules state that a player will be suspended for his club's next game if he doesn't participate in the All-Star Contest without prior approval. Inter Miami's busy summer schedule, however—which included multiple games at the Club World Cup—offered somewhat mitigating circumstances, though the league didn't see it that way, much to Inter Miami's chagrin.

"What I do find strange is that one day they say one thing and the next day they make a completely different decision," Mascherano added. "Because we all heard what was said, that it was understandable, given the number of games he'd been playing. We didn't ask for it to be handled differently."