Lionel Messi scored a fantastic goal in injury time for Inter Miami during their 1-1 draw with LA Galaxy on Sunday.
Galaxy took the lead after 75 minutes through striker Dejan Joveljic, before midfielder Mark Delgado received a second yellow card and was sent off from the game. Messi, aged 36, teamed up effectively with his former Barcelona teammate Jordi Alba, sliding in at full stretch to score past goalkeeper John McCarthy.
Miami won against Real Salt Lake in their Major League Soccer opener the previous week. They currently lead the Eastern Conference with four points, having played two matches. DC United, their rivals, started their campaign with a 3-1 win against New England Revolution on Saturday.
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Miami’s head coach Gerardo Martino commented, “We were outplayed in the first half, and we could have gone into the dressing room a goal down. They scored on a counter-attack, but after that, we showed character.” Miami fielded all four of their former Barcelona players in the match, including Messi, Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, and Luis Suarez. Despite Busquets and Suarez seeming a bit slow, Messi seized a late opportunity.
With the Galaxy down to 10 men after Delgado’s red card in the 87th minute, Alba passed the ball to Messi inside the box, allowing the former Paris St-Germain forward to score a late equalizer.
In another match, Phil Neville‘s Portland Timbers comfortably defeated the Colorado Rapids 4-1 in their first game of the season. This victory marked Neville’s first win since returning to Major League Soccer after being dismissed by Inter Miami in June.
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