Lionel Messi’s every move was on display in his Major League Soccer (MLS) playoff debut.
Every touch. Every shot attempt. Even when he was not doing anything at all, it was shown.
There was a “Messi-cam” focused on the Inter Miami superstar throughout his team’s playoff-opening, 2-1 win over Atlanta United on Friday night. Nothing but the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner livestreamed on MLS’ TikTok account for the duration of the match.
Photo: AFP
The stadium was packed with Messi fans and familiar faces, including Miami Dolphins wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr, former National Football League player Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson and actor Idris Elba.
“The Messi effect has been awesome. It’s been very awesome,” Johnson said in a televised interview.
“Having Messi here in the States and being able to grow the game as much as we’ve been trying to grow the game … especially for me, not having to travel to Spain anymore to watch him play has been a joy,” he added.
Messi did not score, but assisted on Jordi Alba’s go-ahead goal in the 60th minute.
Inter Miami is the No. 1 seed in the playoffs after setting MLS records for points (74) and winning percentage (.765).
Messi, coming off a hat trick in the regular-season finale, is in contention for league Most Valuable Player despite missing nearly half the MLS season because of injury and commitments to Argentina’s national team.
He finished with 20 goals and 16 assists. Luis Suarez also scored 20 goals, joining Messi to become the first pair of MLS teammates to reach that milestone in a season.
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