(Reuters) - Argentina have left Lionel Messi out of their squad for World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Colombia as the Paris St Germain forward continues his recovery from COVID-19 infection. The twice World Cup winners and current Copa America champions have qualified for the finals in Qatar and sit second in the 10-team South American group. The 34-year-old Messi was omitted from Argentina’s 27-man squad after not playing for PSG since Dec. 22 against FC Lorient in French Ligue 1. Messi spent the festive period in Argentina before testing positive for COVID-19 and trained separately from his team mates on his return to Paris. Argentina are away to Chile on Jan. 27 and host Colombia on Feb. 1.

Source: Egypt Today January 20, 2022 08:01 UTC