Lionel Messi scores stunner in Inter Miami draw at Philadelphia in MLS | OneFootball

Without meaning to compare, surely none of the previous 921 goals in Lionel Messi’s spectacular career had the emotional weight of the one he scored Wednesday night in an Inter Miami shirt. Not because it made it 2-1 at the time in the comeback against Philadelphia Union—which eventually equalized 2-2 in the second half—but because it was the first dedicated to the memory of his father, Jorge.

For the first time, and in his third match after that sad Saturday, August 8, in Rosario, when he raised his arms with both index fingers pointing to the sky, there were two reasons: his grandmother Celia Olivera de Cuccittini, who used to take him to play at Abanderado Grandoli on those afternoons, and his friend, agent, and father, who died at 68 after battling an illness.

Messi, who had already taken part in the move that led to young Pinter’s equalizer with a pinpoint cross for Luis Suárez to head down, received the ball in the box in the 26th minute of the first half, with space on the right side, one of his favorite areas. He squared up his marker and cut inside, waiting for an opening, which came with his second left-foot touch and led to a curling shot that left the opposing goalkeeper with no answer. A great goal.

In the celebration, he did nothing different from usual. He took congratulations from his teammates and even made sure to give precise instructions about what was happening on the field.

The 39-year-old from Rosario took a while to get into the game: he didn’t touch the ball for the first time until the ninth minute. He always tried to be the focal point of his team’s attack and to stay sharp and well positioned for the counterattack.

He had more chances to score, both from free kicks. They came from a similar spot, about 20 meters from goal just behind the arc, one in each half. On both, on a pitch that was in pretty bad shape, his shot hit the wall.

Neil Pierre equalized in the 58th minute and, if not for VAR intervening to disallow a goal for a very tight offside, Inter Miami would have lost. With the draw, they remain behind Nashville (whom they beat 4-1 last Saturday) in the Eastern Conference standings, although now by seven points, having moved ahead of the New York Red Bulls. Philadelphia was the only MLS team that had won all four matches after the 2026 World Cup.

Right at the end, the referee sent off Yannick Bright of Inter Miami and Cavan Sullivan of Philadelphia for shoving and trading blows.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.