Eight-time world footballer Lionel Messi’s title dream with Inter Miami in Major League Soccer was dashed early.
In the decisive third game for a place in the quarterfinals, Miami lost 2:3 (1:2) at home to Atlanta United. Messi, who is only 1.70 m tall, scored with a header in the 65th minute to make it 2-2, but the Pole Bartosz Slisz (76th) decided the game a little later. Outsiders Atlanta knocked the best team of the regular season out of the competition in the first playoff round.
“The players are sad, as they should be when there are so many expectations and the team can’t meet them,” said Miami coach Gerardo Martino, who led Atlanta to the MLS title in 2018: “The season had good and bad sides. In this last part of the year we got used to achieving the goals, but we couldn’t achieve the most important thing.”
Messi himself did not comment immediately after the game; the 37-year-old Argentine’s contract with David Beckham’s club runs until the end of 2025. He scored 21 goals in 22 games this season.
Alba criticizes MLS mode
Messi’s teammate Jordi Alba, who was once a teammate of the 2022 world champion at FC Barcelona for years, criticized the mode in Major League Soccer after his elimination. This was “a bit unfair,” explained the Spaniard: “It’s been done this way for many years, but I think the champion of one conference should compete against the champion of the other to make it as fair as possible.”
Miami set a league record with 74 points in the main round. Atlanta (40) only slipped into the play-offs through qualification.
In the quarterfinals (from November 23rd) Atlanta will face Orlando City. Last week, Los Angeles Galaxy had already reached the round of the top eight with Marco Reus, their next opponent is Minnesota United. In the other duels, Los Angeles FC will face the Seattle Sounders and the New York Red Bulls, trained by Sandro Schwarz, will face city rivals New York City FC.
Source: www.sport.de
