UPDATE: Taking a lead into halftime! Wow, Robert Taylor really had us going with that strike!

The Vancouver Whitecaps will not be without soccer sensation Lionel Messi

The ideal present for Marc DeLuca and his wife’s son Jack’s sixth birthday was a pair of tickets to a Vancouver Whitecaps game featuring Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF.

Thousands of fans who spent a pretty penny on tickets to Saturday’s game were just as disappointed as the DeLucas family when they heard that the famous Argentine soccer hero didn’t make it to British Columbia.

About $1,500 was paid by Marc DeLuca on five tickets in the upper bowl at B.C. Place. “It was supposed to be a big surprise for [Jack] to see his soccer idol,” DeLuca continued.

“It just completely obliterates our birthday plans.”The match, which was anticipated to attract over 50,000 spectators, would not include any great players, Messi included.

Aside from being the best club in Major League Soccer, Miami also decided to retain Sergio Busquets, a midfielder from Spain, and Luis Suarez, a striker from Uruguay.

According to Miami head coach Gerardo (Tata) Martino, the decision was made because of the club’s impending schedule, which consists of three games from this coming Saturday to the following Saturday. They should have stayed out of this match, in our opinion. Through an interpreter, he announced that although they had been training, they would not be able to participate in the game.

We can totally relate to how annoying it is for fans who want to see these players perform. As football coaches, we occasionally face situations when we must make these really tough judgments. However, the players’ health must always come first.

The artificial turf at B.C. Place was swiftly pointed out by Martino as having no bearing on the decision. He explained that the three-hour time difference and the exhausting flight were the main reasons for keeping the children at home.