Lionel Messi shined on his return from injury on Saturday as he helped the hosts Inter Miami to 3-1 over over Los Angeles Galaxy at Fort Lauderdale. Messi scored a goal and helped with an assit in order to help Inter Miami following a 4-1 loss against Orlando City SC last Saturday.
Messi had missed Miami’s last three matches across competitions owing to a thigh injury and also couldn’t start the game but entered it at the start of the second half. He had suffered injury during Miami’s Leagues Cup match against Necaxa on 2 August.
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Messi missed a couple of clear chances on his return but made the difference in the final minutes. He put Inter Miami ahead in the 84th minute with a left-footed strike from outside the box before setting up Luis Suárez with a back-heel pass to secure a 3-1 win.
The Argentine dribbled past Lucas Sanabria before hitting the goal from as distance and taking it past goalkeeper Novak Micovic to make the scores 2-1.
The goal was Messi’s 19th of the season, keeping him at the top of the MLS scoring charts. The result lifted Miami to fourth in the Eastern Conference after they had dropped to sixth following last week’s 4-1 defeat to Orlando City.
Head coach Javier Mascherano said the club would assess Messi’s fitness on Sunday, citing concerns over his hamstring and fatigue, but added that the forward looked more comfortable as the game progressed. Messi was seen stretching his right leg on a few occasions during the match.
Earlier, Jordi Alba gave Miami the lead late in the first half from a Sergio Busquets pass. Joseph Paintsil equalised for Galaxy in the 59th minute. The defending MLS Cup champions are bottom of the Western Conference this season..
LA Galaxy, the winners of last year’s MLS continue to remain winless in their last four league stage matches and are currently at the bottom of Western Conference.
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