COLLEGE STATION, United States, June 6 (Xinhua) -- Captain Lionel Messi remained on the bench as Argentina continued its World Cup preparations with a 2-0 victory over Honduras on Saturday.
Messi, who is recovering from muscle fatigue in his left hamstring, took part in the warmup at Kyle Field but watched from the sidelines as goals from Lautaro Martinez and Giuliano Simeone sealed a comfortable win.
Despite his absence, Messi is expected to be fit in time for Argentina's opening World Cup group match against Algeria in Kansas City on June 16.
The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner is not the only injury concern for the defending world champion.
Earlier on Saturday, defender Leonardo Balerdi was cut from the Albiceleste squad due to a lower leg injury.
There are also fitness doubts over Gonzalo Montiel (quadriceps), Nahuel Molina (hamstring) and Leandro Paredes (hamstring), while forward Julian Alvarez (ankle) and goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez (hand) are expected to be available when the tournament starts.
Coach Lionel Scaloni said the long list of injuries meant he had not yet decided on a replacement for Balerdi. He said he would wait until after Argentina's final warmup game against Iceland on Tuesday to make any late changes.
"We're not at 100 percent with many players. We still have one more match to draw conclusions," he said. "We have another game on Tuesday and we're not rushing to choose the player who will join the squad."
"What happened to Leo [Balerdi] means we have to evaluate several other teammates as well, and we won't make any decisions until Tuesday without seeing how everyone else is."
Argentina will also meet Austria and Jordan in Group J as it seeks to become only the third team to win consecutive World Cup titles. ■
