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Lionel Messi Notches Two Goals & an Assist in First Game as an Inter Miami CF Starter

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Lionel Messi is off to the races…

The 36-year-old Argentine professional footballer followed up his game-winning goal last week by netting two goals and logging an assist in Inter Miami CF’s 4-0 win over Atlanta United.

Lionel MessiMessi and Sergio Busquets were officially in Inter Miami CF’s starting lineup Tuesday night at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for the first time since joining the MLS side.

It didn’t take long for the former Barcelona teammates to make an impact, with Busquets lofting a perfect ball over Atlanta’s defense to Messi, who missed his first attempt but put back the rebound to give Miami a 1-0 lead in the eighth minute.

Messi added another goal on a counterattack in the 22nd minute to double the margin with an assist from Robert Taylor, who scored Miami’s third to give the team a 3-0 advantage at halftime of the Leagues Cup match.

Taylor scored the final goal for Miami after the break with an assist from Messi, who was substituted in the 78th minute to a rousing ovation from the home crowd.

Busquets left the game six minutes earlier and was replaced by Victor Ulloa.

“It was a good performance and I’m pleased we were able to make our fans happy. A very good game and we took another step in the right direction,” Miami manager Gerardo Martino said.

Miami swept its group and moved on to the round of 32 in the Leagues Cup, in which it will host an opponent to be determined.

Atlanta became the 100th club that Messi has scored against.

Busquets and Messi spent 13 years playing together in Barca‘s first team before Messi moved to Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, and they have remained close friends since their trophy-laden run at Camp Nou.

“So many years playing together, so it’s very easy to play with him,” Busquets said. “I’m so happy to be by his side.”

Messi and Busquets came on as substitutes in their debuts in a dramatic win over Cruz Azul on Friday that saw Messi win the game on the final kick.

Martino managed Messi and Busquets for a season at Barcelona and said after the match he wasn’t surprised to see them connect for the opening goal.

“These two players are so good at what they do, they create space,” Martino said.

“Since those two have gotten here, the spirit has changed,” Miami right-back DeAndre Yedlin said. “Obviously, guys are really excited. But I think just their presence gives everybody more confidence. And I think also the teams that we’re playing against now have a bit of fear in their eyes. When those two are on the field, you know you’re in for a tough game.”

Miami and Atlanta are currently playing in the inaugural Leagues Cup competition — a World Cup-style tournament between MLS and Liga MX sides. Messi could make his official debut in an MLS game at home against Charlotte on August 20.

Lionel Messi On Track to Make Inter Miami Debut This Weekend Following First Training Session

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Lionel Messi is still on track to make his Inter Miami debut this weekend. 

The 36-year-old Argentine professional footballer remains on track for his MLS debut after coming through his first official training session with the MLS club on Tuesday.

 

Miami has long targeted Friday’s Leagues Cup opener against Mexican side Cruz Azul for the Argentine superstar to make his first appearance following his blockbuster move to South Florida. 

It has been a whirlwind few days for Messi, with his signing on a 2 1/2 year contract that’ll pay him between $50 million and $60 million a year being confirmed Saturday before being unveiled in front of a sell-out crowd at Miami’s DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale the following day.

After Messi trained alongside former Barcelona teammate and fellow new signing Sergio Busquets, Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham confirmed that he expects the World Cup winner to play some part in Friday’s game.

“We don’t know if Leo will start the game or whether he’ll come on, because I think at the end of the day, he needs to be ready,” Beckham told ESPN. “We need to protect him and make sure that he’s ready because he’s had a vacation.

“He’s now been in Miami for a week and he’s been training really hard and he looks great. So I think Leo and [head coach] Tata [Martino] will decide when he plays and when he comes on on Friday, but the atmosphere here will be incredible, and hopefully we get a win.”

On Tuesday, a helicopter hovered overhead, drones buzzed around the field and about 200 media members lined up toward the back of the complex to get a look at Messi. He, like Busquets, went through a welcome tunnel as part of the first practice, which meant jogging past teammates as they lined up and clapped.

“It’s like Michael Jordan going to play, you know, overseas,” Miami’s United States international defender DeAndre Yedlin said. “You know it’s like I said, it’s not something that I would have thought would have happened in my time playing. But I’m so glad that it did.”

More international stars could soon be joining Messi, with Inter Miami’s managing owner Jorge Mas saying Tuesday that former Spain left-back Jordi Aba was set to sign later in the day, while also confirming an interest in another of Messi’s former Barcelona teammates, striker Luis Suárez.

For now, though, Mas, who also expects Busquets to make his debut Friday, said he was looking forward to a momentous occasion for a team struggling at the bottom of MLS‘ Eastern Conference after 11 games without a win.

“Friday’s match against Cruz Azul will be a very important for us because we expect to have Lionel and Busi [Busquets] debuts,” he told ESPN. “We are looking to improve our level and aiming for better results. But we also need Lionel and Tata to feel good and help them to get acclimated to the city and club.

“I personally like that Messi’s first game is going to be against a team from Liga MX for a global audience, and I hope Mexico and the United States can enjoy and celebrate this historic occasion.”

Some tickets for the game are going for as little as $275 or so on the secondary market; some of the very best seats are exceeding $19,000. Prices have been fluctuating quite a bit and likely will continue doing so until game time.

Perhaps the most emotional member of the crowd will be Beckham himself, 16 years on from making his own historic move from Real Madrid to the LA Galaxy.

“I might actually cry when I see him walk onto the pitch,” Beckham told ABC‘s Good Morning America.

“I’ve realized as I get older I get more emotional. I look at my kids I get emotional, I talk to my kids and my wife I get emotional. So I think the moment i see Leo step out onto the pitch in front of our fans, in front of this nation … I don’t know, I’ll be emotional for sure.”