Lionel Messi had a memorable Major League Soccer (MLS) debut after scoring a terrific late goal to seal a victory for Inter Miami against New York Red Bulls. Despite securing a remarkable outing at the Red Bull Arena, the Argentine could find himself in deep trouble having allegedly violated the MLS rules. Following the game against the Red Bulls, Messi did not speak with the media and this act of the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner is being perceived by many as a violation of the tournament’s media rules. A report published by news agency AP claimed that Inter Miami spokeswoman Molly Dreska said after the game that Messi was not being made available to the press.
The MLS rules ask footballers to be available for interviews at the end of the matches. According to media reports, MLS’s executive vice president of communications Dan Courtemanche had said before the game that all players, including Messi, will have to be available to the media post-match. Though, there is no official word yet on the nature and intensity of the punishment which Messi could face.
Coming back to the game, Inter Miami midfielder Diego Gomez scored the opening goal of the night in the 37th minute. Inter Miami head coach Tata Martino kept Messi on the bench and the World Cup-winner was introduced on the hour-mark. Messi scored a sublime goal in the 89th minute to seal a much-needed win for the Herons. Before the game against New York Red Bulls, Inter Miami had been winless in 11 MLS matches. Messi has so far scored 11 goals for Inter Miami in nine games across all competitions.
“He’s [Lionel Messi] unbelievable, every day it’s something new, on and off the field. He’s an amazing person to play with and I am so blessed to play with him,” Miami’s teenage defender Noah Allen was quoted as saying by AFP.
The important win against New York Red Bulls helped Inter Miami in improving their position in the MLS standings. With 11 games still to be played, the Herons have now managed to reduce the points gap to the last playoff spot to 11 points.
Speaking to Inter Miami’s official website, Tata Martino underlined the need to rotate the squad regularly. “We put a lot of value in this win because this [playing with a rotation] is something we need to get used to because Leo is going to join his national team. He’ll miss at least three games this year and next year it will be the same, and we need to understand that when he’s not here the team still needs to provide results,” said Martino. In their next match, Inter Miami will host Nashville SC in the MLS on Wednesday.