Lionel Messi watched from a sideline box as Montreal took advantage of Inter Miami’s defensive miscues to hand them their first Major League Soccer loss of 2018 — a 3-2 home setback on Sunday evening.
Messi was not available after initially listing his condition as questionable due to a shin injury.
Montreal vs. Inter Miami
Messi’s injury occurred during last week’s CONCACAF Champions Cup tie against Nashville when he attempted to contest a pass from Lukas Macnaughton of Nashville, who appeared to step on Messi’s calf and twist his left ankle as they challenged for possession. Trainers attended to Messi as he lay in pain on the pitch in the 77th minute but allowed him to continue play despite suffering such discomfort on his journey back from Nashville.
Messi injury impact on Inter Miami
Messi exited Nashville with an injured knee, but head coach Gerardo (Tata) Martino revealed Sunday that Messi and the team had already agreed that he would rest against Montreal regardless of what transpired at Nashville.
Martino has been charged with devising ways of overseeing Messi’s workload and recovery after playing every minute in Inter Miami’s first four matches of this season.
Montreal team strength without Messi
Reducing Messi’s workload makes sense; Inter Miami will play two more matches over the next six days for four in 10 days; Argentina called up Messi for warmup matches ahead of Copa America, which starts March 22 and 26; plus Inter Miami have an away match at New York on March 23.
First season loss for Inter Miami
Inter Miami assistant coach Javier Morales noted during a media availability Saturday: “Leo is someone we all recognize; he wants to play every match, and it would be beneficial if we discussed with him, assessed his situation, and discussed options on what will work best for him.
Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets opted out of starting but came on as second-half substitutes on Sunday; Suarez, like Messi before him, had started all four Inter Miami matches prior to this one.
Also Read:
- NFL Draft 2024 Schedule, Venue, Teams, Top Prospects, Live Streaming
- Horvat scores overtime winner as Islanders beat Stars
- Jason Kelce Announces NFL Retirement After 13 Remarkable Years with Eagles
“They asked me 10 days ago if we would do any rotation,” Martino responded abruptly when asked by reporters about resting Messi and why his lineup on Sunday differed from normal. “Today we did it. There’s no other explanation.”
Leonarda Campana scored Miami’s equalizer in the 71st minute after Montreal took an early advantage on Fernando Alvarez’s header, sending his header into the bottom left corner of Chase Stadium from Lawson Sunderland’s cross. Campana gave life and energy back into Chase Stadium’s crowd through this score at Chase Stadium with a header goal from Leonarda Campana that gave Miami hope of a comeback win against Montreal.
“To be completely honest, what makes our team great is its unified effort. No matter who plays on my team – Lassiter, Raheem, Joel Gabriele or George; every player on my squad shares one vision,” stated Alvarez.
“Our team is really cohesive, no matter who plays. Both sides deserve credit for scoring two goals; however, our victory was more deserved given that we managed the game well.”
Montreal FC currently have seven out of a possible nine points at this early point in their Major League Soccer (MLS) debut season and remains undefeated across three road matches, which marks their second-best start ever since joining.
Inter Miami struggled in this game as Montreal scored twice within five minutes thanks to scores by Matias Coccaro and Sunusi Ibrahim for Montreal FC. Inter Miami could only maintain their one-goal lead against Montreal.
Martino expressed disappointment over their loss. They should have won, according to him, but what concerned him most was how their team wasn’t defending as hard as necessary.
Inter Miami fell for the first time this season despite possessing many chances, yet fell by Jordi Alba’s left-footed shot from outside of the box into the top-left corner. That made the scoreline 3-3.
Inter Miami will face Nashville again on Wednesday for their CONCACAF Champions Cup Round of 16 matchup.
Also Read:
