Copa America 2024 hero Lautaro Martínez will miss out on the upcoming Argentina men’s national football team South American Qualifiers double header after a hamstring injury. 

The Albiceleste will face off against Uruguay on Friday and Brazil next Tuesday. The two games could prove key to sealing Argentina’s ticket to the 2026 World Cup, but the national team announced on Tuesday that Martínez won’t be on the squad.

After Tuesday’s afternoon practice at the Argentine Football Association’s training facilities, the national team announced on X that Martínez would sit the matches out due to a lower left hamstring injury. 

It’s not a new malady. Martínez had to sit out the second leg of Inter Milan’s Champions League series against Feyenoord. However, he appeared to be back to full fitness after scoring with Inter against Atalanta last Sunday.

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He joins Lionel Messi and Paulo Dybala on the injured list, reducing head coach Lionel Scaloni’s attacking options ahead of the double header. Atlético Madrid’s Julián Álvarez looks set to lead the front line with teammate Ángel Correa, who inherited Messi’s iconic number 10 shirt.

Earlier in the day, Martínez was part of the AFA’s announcement of two solidarity campaigns to help those affected by the Bahía Blanca floods. El Toro, as he’s affectionately known, was born in the city and came through local club Club Atlético Liniers.

“I want to thank the whole country,” the striker, who plays in Italy, said at the press conference. “Seeing the massive support for the city from so far away … it’s hard to describe what it feels like because my family still lives there.”