Messi scores incredible free-kick winner on Inter Miami debut

The Argentine legend delivered a Hollywood ending on his maiden Inter Miami appearance

After nearly two months of anticipation, Lionel Messi finally took the field for Inter Miami. And in stunning and dramatic fashion, he delivered.

The Argentine legend scored a dramatic stoppage-time winner on a free kick against Cruz Azul — a Hollywood ending to the opening match of his tenure with Inter Miami.

Messi came off the bench in the 54th minute of his club’s Leagues Cup match against the Liga MX side on Friday, with a sold-out crowd at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale giving him a huge ovation as he came on.

With his side up 1-0, Messi was immediately handed the captain’s armband.

Messi’s longtime Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets entered the game at the same time to also make his Inter Miami debut, with Josef Martínez rounding off a triple substitution.

The 36-year-old took up a position as a right attacking midfielder, looking to get into the half-space and connect attacking moves. Despite not having played for a month, Messi showed several examples of his quality and nearly combined for goals on multiple occasions.

After Uriel Antuna equalized for Cruz Azul in the 65th minute, the stage was set for Messi in stoppage time when he was fouled just outside the box.

It was a moment that was set up for the most dramatic of endings — and Messi delivered just that.

If there was any doubt that Friday night was an event, the presence of the likes of LeBron James. Serena Williams and Kim Kardashian made that abundantly clear.

Friday marked the culmination, as well as the beginning, of one of the most significant chapters in MLS history.

In early June, Messi announced that he was heading to Inter Miami after leaving PSG as a free agent. It took several weeks for all the details of a complicated contract to be settled, but the 36-year-old finally officially signed last weekend before he was presented to Inter Miami fans the following night.

Busquets would also sign with Inter following Messi’s arrival, with Jordi Alba, another former Barcelona mainstay, also set to join Inter Miami after his signing was made official on Thursday.

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