MIAMI — Lionel Messi has been training with his teammates after six weeks off with an ankle injury and has not been ruled out of the Inter Miami game Saturday on the road against the Chicago Fire, according to coach Tata Martino.

“He is better each day, still has not received medical clearance, but we will determine after training (Friday) whether he can travel to Chicago or not,” Martino said. “He has been training with the ball for several weeks, first on his own with the medical staff and physios and then he integrated into some parts of the group training and continues to evolve.”

Asked about the risk of Messi returning too early, especially because Inter Miami already clinched a playoff spot and will be favored to beat a Fire team that is 30 points behind Miami in the Eastern Conference standings, Martino said: “These are things we are talking about with Leo based on how he is feeling. It is an injury that has kept him out for more than six weeks, so he must feel very confident in order to return.”

Despite the gap in the standings, the coach stressed that his first-place team is highly motivated for the game Saturday because it wants to stay in the lead in the Supporters Shield race and remain in peak form with eight games left before the playoffs.

“There are not many easy rivals in MLS,” Martino said. “When we played in Chicago on their home field last year we gave up four goals (and lost 4-1). They are still in the hunt for a playoff or play-in spot. And we have a lot to play for as far as our season objectives. We want to win the Supporters Shield. If we felt that by clinching a playoff spot last week we could now slow down we’d be making a big mistake.”

Right back Marcelo Weigandt echoed his coach’s sentiments.

“We take every game just as seriously, with the same effort,” Weigandt said. “We are a group that doesn’t like to lose in anything and we are taking this game as if it were a very important game, like always.”

Saturday’s game is the second time these teams meet this season. Miami won 2-1 at home on July 20. Matias Rojas and Jordi Alba scored in that game. Luis Suarez is coming off a big game last weekend against FC Cincinnati. The 37-year-old Uruguayan forward scored two goals in the first six minutes and Miami held on to win, 2-0, despite going down a man after Tomas Aviles was ejected with a second yellow card in the 42nd minute. Aviles is suspended from the game against Chicago.

The Fire can move into a playoff position with a win on Saturday and some help from other teams. A 2-2 tie against New York City FC last weekend put the Fire within two points of a playoff berth.

Among the Fire players to watch is Hugo Cuypers, who has 10 goals and two assists. Inter Miami has the best record in the league with 56 points on 17 wins, four losses and five ties. Chicago is 13th in the East with 26 points and a 6-12-8 record.

Messi has missed 19 of 34 games this season due to injury and national team duty. He has missed the past seven games since injuring ligaments in his right ankle on July 14 while playing for Argentina in the Copa America final against Colombia at Hard Rock Stadium.

Last season, a sellout crowd of 61,000 at Soldier Field was disappointed that Messi, who was injured at the time, did not make the trip for the Inter Miami road game against the Chicago Fire.

This year, the Fire was prepared for the possibility of another Messi no-show.

If Messi does not play on Saturday, fans who bought tickets will receive one of three perks: credit toward season-ticket membership, complimentary tickets to the Fire’s fan appreciation match in October, or single-match tickets to next year’s matchup against Inter Miami. The offer was dependent on the date of purchase.

After the games this weekend Major League Soccer halts for two weeks during the FIFA break. Inter Miami’s next game at home Sept. 14 against the Philadelphia Union.

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