Lionel Messi was recently sidelined with an injury. Now the 38-year-old has made his comeback with a goal and an assist for Inter Miami.
Lionel Messi suffered a muscle injury in the Leagues Cup match against Mexican club Necaxa and has been sidelined since the beginning of August.
But now the Argentine has made an impressive comeback. In the home game against L.A. Galaxy, in which Marco Reus started and was substituted shortly before the end, Messi came on after the break with the score at 1-0, but was initially unable to prevent the visitors from equalizing (Joseph Paintsil, 59). However, he then played a key role in turning the game in Inter’s favor.
A short dribble, a beautiful assist
In the 84th minute, he started a short, irresistible dribble from the center and slotted the ball low into the goal with his left foot to make it 2-1. A few minutes later, he set up Luis Suarez with a backheel pass, which the Uruguayan converted to make it 3-1 (89). In the first half, Jordi Alba had scored the 1-0 shortly before halftime on a pass from Sergio Busquets.
“He wasn’t completely free in his movements, but he got better with every minute,” said Miami coach Javier Mascherano. “Sometimes we have to slow him down, but when he feels good, he knows his body better than anyone else.”
Miami now ranks fifth in the MLS Eastern Conference with 45 points, but is seven points behind leaders Cincinnati with three games remaining. Reus and defending champions L.A. Galaxy are currently bottom of the Western Conference. The defending champions have only managed three wins in 26 games.
