“What I looked at is the goal. I knew I had to score, it was the last action of the match. I wanted to score so that we didn’t go to penalties afterwards. It was very important for us to get this victory, it’s a new tournament, it will give us confidence for the future. Lionel Messi’s words are simple, but effective. Like this sumptuous free kick, which he scored at the last minute of regulation time to give victory to Inter Miami, this Friday evening, against the Mexican club Cruz Azul (2-1) for his first appearance with the MLS club in the Leagues Cup.
Serena Williams and the Beckham family’s reaction to Messi’s Free Kick. Kim Kardashian managed to miss it mdrrrrr. pic.twitter.com/kK9UFEgFQb
— Messiah Yaniss ???????????????? (@Zemal_GOAT16) July 22, 2023
First match, first goal, first victory. At the dawn of his adventure with Inter Miami, the Argentinian Lionel Messi, first substitute, changed the course of the match, as all the Latin people of the city of Florida hoped.
First on the bench, red chasuble on his back, Messi had to wait before making his first appearance. The fans were stamping their feet, clamoring for their “Messi!” Messi! “, from the 20th minute of play. The Argentine star was exulted when Robert Taylor opened the scoring for the locals with a shot deflected into the goal by the post, before the break (44th).
It was later, in the 54th minute, that the former player of Paris Saint Germain and FC Barcelona put on his pink jersey to enter the game to a standing ovation from the public. Sergio Busquets took advantage of the same stoppage of play to also make his debut with Miami. Already wearing the captain’s armband, Messi watched helplessly as Cruz Azul returned, thanks to Antuna’s goal (65th).
Then the Argentinian tried a lot, often succeeded before being decisive. Jostled in the 94th minute, Messi harvests an ideal free kick… which he will send into the top corner to close this first luminous appearance. David Beckham’s franchise had not, until then, won a single meeting for eleven games.
Rain of stars to see the Messi
A success in the last minutes, which capsized the Fort Lauderdale stadium with happiness. A joy that was already present several hours before kick-off. Including Serena Williams, Kim Kardashian, LeBron James, and of course the Beckham family.
“To be honest, as soon as I saw the free kick awarded, I thought that was how it had to end. Especially when you have players like Leo (Messi) and Sergio (Busquets) on the pitch, that’s what they produce. It’s very exciting tonight for our supporters. All these people who come here to see Leo enter the field, not to mention what he has done (…) It’s a dream come true for everyone who is in this stadium, ”said a moved David Beckham, president of the Florida club.
Thousands of pink flags with Messi and his number ten depicted on them had been distributed around the stadium. A small gift that modestly offset the hundreds of dollars spent to attend the meeting. The cheapest tickets available for resale on Friday morning were displayed at 160 dollars on the specialized site Vividseats. The most expensive were over $8,800, a record for this competition. The price to pay to see the one who entered the pantheon of football, and sport in general, during his lifetime.
VIDEO. ‘We’re going to have a lot of fun’: 20,000 fans cheer Messi during his presentation by Inter Miami
The adventure continues on Tuesday in this Leagues Cup for Inter Miami, who will face Atlanta, perhaps with newcomer Jordi Alba. Created in 2019, this competition brings together twenty-nine teams from MLS and eighteen others from the Mexican first division. Formations divided into fifteen groups of three clubs. After two matches, the first two are qualified for the round of 16 and then begins a knockout phase. Cruz Azul was the first winner, the defending champion is Club Leon.
