Injuries plague South American World Cup qualifying even though Messi is set to return

SAO PAULO — Lionel Messi will return from injury for Argentina in the next two rounds of South American World Cup qualifying, but several other top players will have to skip the upcoming matches.

Brazil, currently lagging in fifth place in the 10-team round robin competition with 10 points after eight games, will have to cope with the absence of injured forward Vinicius Júnior, in addition to long-term absentee Neymar. Coach Dorival Júnior, who is under pressure, said Wednesday that a little-known striker will take the place of the Real Madrid star in his starting lineup at Chile: 23-year-old Igor Jesus, who played most of his career at Al-Ahli in Dubai.

Brazil will also miss several other frequent starters in Santiago and on Tuesday against Peru. Goalkeeper Alisson, defenders Éder Militão, Guilherme Arana and Bremer are also out due to injury.

Júnior said in a press conference on Wednesday in Sao Paulo that both Jesus and Abner, a left-back who will start his first match for the national team, are up to the challenge they will face.

“The training sessions showed good things. Everyone is very focused so we can play to matches in a different level from the one of the previous match, especially the first half,” Brazil's coach said, in a reference to his team's 1-0 defeat at Paraguay in October. “We all have this goal to reverse this momentary scenario (of being only in 5th place).”

Despite Messi’s comeback, World Cup champion Argentina will be shorthanded for the matches against Venezuela and Bolivia. The most recent problem came in Wednesday’s training, when 19-year-old midfielder Valentín Carboni injured his left knee.

Defender Marcos Acuña and strikers Paulo Dybala, Nico González and Alejandro Garnacho had already been ruled out.

Goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez is suspended for the two matches due to his poor behavior in the two previous rounds. Argentina leads the standings with 18 points. Top six teams will secure automatic berths at the 2026 World Cup.

Second-placed Colombia, with 16 points, also has its share of injuries ahead of matches at Colombia and at home against Chile. First-choice defender Daniel Muñoz will not play.

The exception will be Uruguay, currently in third position with 15 points. Striker Darwin Núñez will play after the Court for Arbitration of Sport accepted an appeal after his five-match suspension due to incidents with fans at the Copa America. Uruguay will take on Peru and Ecuador.

Bielsa under fire

Several Uruguay players, past and present, are unhappy with coach Marcelo Bielsa. Striker Luis Suárez said this week that the Argentine mistreated players and staffers at the national team training center, which was later confirmed by captain Federico Valverde and other players.

Suárez, who recently retired from the national team, told journalists that Bielsa “did not even say good morning” to his players. The 37-year-old striker also said the coach is mistreating staffers of Uruguay’s soccer federation and forbid players from greeting fans at the latest edition of the Copa América tournament.

“What Luis said is all true, he never lied, he did not exaggerate at any time, he said things as they are,” Valverde said.

Striker Agustín Canobbio, who will not be in Uruguay’s squad for the next two matches, added to the criticism against Bielsa.

“There was nonstop lack of respect. I am very respectful, but we reached a point in which I exploded,” Canobbio told Uruguayan radio Carve Deportiva. “I said it to his face that he was not being respectful.”

The coach is yet to respond.