Lionel Messi's Season Finale with Inter Miami: Shocking Defeat or Astonishing Performance?
Lionel Messi's exceptional Inter Miami journey concludes in disappointment as his MLS season concludes with a 1-0 loss to Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium, marking a challenging end to his fairy tale start in the league
Lionel Messi's Major League Soccer (MLS) season with Inter Miami ended with a 1-0 loss against Charlotte FC at Bank of America Stadium on Saturday, after a promising start. Despite Miami's previous failure to make the playoffs, Charlotte's victory secured their spot in the postseason for the first time. The winning goal came from Kerwin Vargas in the 13th minute.
After Messi's arrival in July, Miami achieved a club-record 12-game unbeaten streak and secured their first trophy, the Leagues Cup. However, they concluded the season with a seven-game winless streak, during which Messi was absent in some matches due to injury.
Head coach Gerardo Martino, who joined the club in June when they were at the bottom of their conference, stated, "Upon our arrival, we had the potential to compete well in two competitions: the Leagues Cup and the U.S. Open Cup. Additionally, we faced a challenging situation in another tournament."
Lionel Messi in action against Charlotte FC.
Inter Miami emerged victorious in one out of the three tournaments. Had I known beforehand that we would secure a win in at least one of these tournaments, I would have unquestionably signed on without hesitation.
According to the MLS, the match drew a crowd of 66,101 spectators, most likely eager to catch a glimpse of Messi, a legendary player who has won the Ballon d'Or a remarkable seven times and is widely considered one of the greatest in history.
Messi, the Argentine superstar, led Miami as their captain throughout the entirety of the match. In the 62nd minute, his skillful curling free kick was met by an impressive save from goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina, as it was pushed onto the crossbar. Additionally, early in the second half, Messi had a goal disallowed due to being in an offside position.
Miami ends the season 14th in the 15-team Eastern Conference, finishing with 34 points, while Messi concludes his campaign having scored 11 goals in 14 games in his debut season.
