Messi’s debut match with Inter Miami club against rival Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup at DRV PNK was packed with spectators. Among them are many famous figures of the American sports and entertainment industry such as LeBron James, Kim Kardashian, Serena Williams …
Messi and teammate Sergio Busquets were benched by coach Tata Martino, because both had just returned to training after the summer break. But with the great influence of these two top stars who just joined, the Inter Miami club players played with great effort against rival Cruz Azul from Liga MX (Mexico).
At the end of the first half, midfielder Robert Taylor opened the score 1-0 for Inter Miami after a beautiful diagonal shot. At the beginning of the second half, coach Tata Martino tossed Messi and Busquets into the field in turn to the excitement of the fans on the DRV PNK field.
Almost immediately Messi left his mark with beautiful assists for new teammates to have a chance to score. However, the Inter Miami defense made too many mistakes for Cruz Azul to have a chance to equalize 1-1 in the 65th minute scored by Uriel Antuna.
Messi’s debut match then took place in the closeness of the two teams. Before in injury time, Messi’s class spoke up. Minutes 90 + 4, Inter Miami was awarded a free kick outside the round of 16m50, Messi as usual took a free kick and shot with his magical left foot to put the ball into the far corner to knock down Cruz Azul club keeper, helping Inter Miami win 2-1.
This is also Inter Miami’s first win after a recent series of 11 matches without a win (8 losses, 3 draws). In the upcoming match, Messi and Busquets are likely to start from the beginning when Inter Miami meets Atlanta United on the morning of July 26 (Vietnam time) also in the Leagues Cup.
