The Argentinian put the game on track with a beautiful direct shot to the top corner
Inter Miami was about to take the final in the unusual last play of the game
Leo Messiwho made his debut less than a month ago with Inter Miami, culminated this Saturday the miracle of the Florida team by beat Nashville in the shootout from the penalty mark to win the Leagues Cup (1-1, 9-10 on penalties)
The Argentine star, who he shone with a new goal tonightlanded in a sunken team, aimlessly and bottom of the Eastern Conference of the MLS with eleven games in a row without winning.
But the magic of Rosario’s genius has totally revolutionized the Miami teamwhich, further reinforced by the signings of Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, sealed the first title in its history tonight after a very exciting game.
Messi not only won his first title with Inter Miami this Saturday but also, cWith 44 trophies, he equaled Daniel Alves as the footballer with the most titles in history.
HAHAHAHAHA I LOVE YOU MESSI
pic.twitter.com/SECM20ZXXV– Inter Miami ARG 🇦🇷 (@chichoRC_) August 20, 2023
The 10 of the albiceleste He also finished as the top scorer in the Leagues Cup with an extraordinary mark of 10 goals in just seven games.
Messi’s arrival in the MLS has been experienced in Miami, the MLS and the USA with extraordinary passion and the first edition of the League Cupa new tournament in which all the MLS and Liga MX teams face each othersealed a ‘made in Hollywood’ ending for the landing of the Argentine on American soil.
Messi to the rescue
With a fantastic atmosphere at Geodis Park to support the team from the country capital, Nashville started with a very compact block and with a solid pressure in which the visitors got stuck.
The local team did not surprise, Totally dedicated to looking for the gold against the counterattack and what the unruly Hany Mukhtar (MVP and top scorer in the MLS in 2022) could invent between the lines.
It was difficult for him to respond to the pink outfit, with a lot of possession without depth, but Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino’s men did not lose patience despite the fact that Messi went practically unnoticed in the first 20 minutes.
In fact, the first chances were for Nashville, first with a deflected shot from Shaq Moore and then with a header from Walker Zimmerman that Drake Callender caught.
Little by little, Inter Miami found some cracks in the Nashville wall, especially by a left wing in which Jordi Alba gave a lot of oxygen to his teammates.
Precisely from the left side, Robert Taylor tested the local goalkeeper with a dry shot from outside the area in the 21st minute.
But the equality of the duel flew through the air with the umpteenth genius of Messi.
The Argentine, who had gone down to the midfield on several occasions in search of the ball, appeared out of nowhere to hunt a rebound in the Nashville front, he trimmed Zimmerman and hit a lovely shot straight into the top corner.
With the score in favor, the slow -albeit intense- pace of the match further favored Inter Miami while Nashville, still in ‘shock’ from that magical flash of Messionly found timid traces of danger in some high balls.
Nahville responds but penalties decide
He didn’t change the script on the reboot, with a very comfortable Inter Miami with the ball in their possession and that touched the second with a shot from Josef Martínez to a pass from Alba that Zimmerman blocked.
But the Nashville He woke up suddenly at minute 57 thanks to a corner.
Mukhtar served it to the near post in search of Sam Surridge and the ball ended up falling into the small area, where Fafà Picault headed it in and the ball ended up bouncing off Benjamin Cremaschi and Drake Callender.
The goal ignited Nashville and its fans while Inter Miami, which seemed to have controlled the final, was somewhat touched and became entangled in inaccuracies.
There came the best moments of the yellow and black team, with inertia in their favor, with an extra point of energy to take the divided balls and with I really want the game to open definitively.
Inter Miami found the answer in the usual, a Messi who caressed the double in 71 crashing a cross shot into the post.
Nashville was not scared, as they finally found their very clear opportunity on the counterattack with a double option that neither Surridge nor Mukhtar could achieve.
The game ended better the Nashville, much more dynamic and that he won with the entry into attack of reinforcements such as the Costa Rican Randall Leal, against an Inter Miami that reached the denouement with the right forces and physicality to the limit.
Mukhtar tried in every possible way (direct free kick, counterattack, shot from a heel…) and Surridge also had a header in minute 92.
And even so, Inter Miami was inches away from taking the final in an incredible and crazy last play of the game. The Ecuadorian Leonardo Campana won a long ball, planted himself in front of Elliot Panicco, chipped it in front of the goalkeeper and still had time to reach his faulty shot with no one around him, but his last attempt diving to the ground ended up on the post.
Already in the penalty shootout, the two teams showed an excellent success and, after the failures of Leal and Ulloa, luck was decided in the goalkeepers’ shots, where Callender guessed Panicco’s shot and thus closed Messi’s first trophy in the US.
– Data sheet:
1. Nashville: Panicco; Moore, Zimmerman, MacNaughton, Lovitz; Muyl (Leal, m. 82), McCarty (Davis, m. 72), Godoy, Fafà (Shaffelburg, m. 72); Mukhtar and Surridge.
Coach: Gary Smith.
1. Inter Miami: Callender, Yedlin, Kryvtsov, Miller, Alba, Busquets, Arroyo (Ulloa, m. 80), Cremaschi (Gómez, m. 68), Messi, Martínez (Campana, m. 68) and Taylor (Ruíz, m. 80).
Coach: Gerardo Martino.
Goals: 0-1, m. 23: Messi; 1-1, m. 57: Callender (own goal).
Penalties: Messi (goal, 0-1); Mukhtar (goal, 1-1); Busquets (goal, 1-2); Loyal (miss, 1-2); Bell (goal, 1-3); Godoy (goal, 2-3); Miller (goal, 2-4); Zimmerman (goal, 3-4); Ulloa (misses, 3-4); Surridge (goal, 4-4); Kryvtsov (goal, 4-5); Moore (goal, 5-5); Alba (goal, 5-6); Lovitz (goal, 6-6); Gomez (goal, 6-7); MacNaughton (goal, 7-7); Ruíz (goal, 7-8); Davis (goal, 8-8); Yedlin (goal, 8-9); Shaffelburg (goal, 9-9); Callender (goal, 9-10); Panicco (misses, 9-10).
Referee: Ismail Elfath. He admonished Godoy at Nashville and Ulloa at Inter Miami.
Incidents: Final of the first edition of the Leagues Cup played at Geodis Park in Nashville.