Inter Miami started its participation in the Leagues Cup tournament with a win, after beating Atlas 2:1 in Fort Lauderdale, sportal.bg reported.
The match was marked by the usual brilliance of Lionel Messi, who returned from suspension, and by the long-awaited debut of Rodrigo De Paul, the American club's newest star addition.
At "Chase Stadium" the team, led by Javier Mascherano, presented itself with its strongest lineup, including Messi, Luis Suarez, Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets and debutant De Paul, who played the full 90 minutes. After an intense first half, the score was revealed only in the second half, with Messi taking over the role of conductor. In the 57th minute, the Argentine captain received a pass from Busquets in the penalty area and elegantly assisted Telasco Segovia for 1-0, which caused a storm of applause from the audience.
Atlas responded and equalized in the 80th minute through Rivaldo Lozano, returning the intrigue to the match. However, the decisive moment came deep into added time: Messi combined with Suarez and with incredible foresight assisted Marcelo Weygant for the final 2-1. A last-minute goal that sealed Inter Miami's victory and caused a bit of tension after Messi celebrated euphorically with Matias Coccaro, which forced the intervention of... the Argentine's bodyguard.
With this performance, Messi added two assists to his statistics since Inter Miami returned from the Club World Cup: eight goals and four assists in just six matches. The Florida team will play again next Sunday against Necaxa, again at home, in the second round of the tournament's group stage.