Messi’s two assists help Inter Miami salvage 2-2 tie vs. NYCFC in dramatic MLS opener
Lionel Messi, wearing a different haircut and Inter Miami’s new pink striped jersey, looked like the same old Messi as the 2025 MLS season got underway Saturday night, battling for 105 minutes and playing a major role in both Miami goals in a tense 2-2 tie against NYCFC.
The second came at the 100-minute mark, when some fans had already headed to the exits. Miami, which had been playing down a man since Tomas Aviles’ 23rd minute ejection, was on the verge of losing the game when Messi came to the rescue, sending a beautiful through ball to newly-signed Venezuelan Telasco Segovia, who chipped the ball in for the equalizer in his MLS debut.
“He is the soul of this team, you saw this on the pitch,” new coach Javier Mascherano said of Messi, his former teammate with FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team. “He was like a kid out there playing, and he doesn’t want to lose. For us, it’s a big, big advantage. We need to keep him with this spirit because it’s not just what he does on the pitch. It’s what he transfers to his teammates and all he does at 37 years old.”
Messi was so fired up that he argued with the referee after the game, drawing a yellow card as he headed to the tunnel.
Mascherano said he obviously would have preferred a win, and felt his team was superior when it was 11 v 11, but he was was proud of his players for never giving up and left satisfied with the result. He said he did not want to comment on the officiating.
“What I want to emphasize after this game is the heart of the players,” he said. “At the end, the team tied because it has spirit and heart and that is the positive we have to take away. Less than 72 hours ago they played in minus-24 degrees and [Saturday night] they ran like horses. We have to keep overcoming obstacles we will face along the way, but I like to focus on the positive.”
Messi, the Argentine icon, wasted no time making an impact, delivering an assist for Aviles’ goal after a nice feed from Jordi Alba five minutes into the game and delighting the near-sellout crowd of 21,184 at Chase Stadium, which included tennis legend Serena Williams and actress Eva Longoria.
Messi’s perfect pass through a tight space came 72 hours after he scored the lone goal in a Champions Cup win at Sporting KC in frigid weather conditions.
It was a balmy 68 degrees in South Florida Saturday. Things got more heated in a hurry as Aviles was ejected, leading to an NYCFC equalizer by Mitja Ilenic. Aviles was slapped with a red card after a tackle in the penalty area and a shirt tug that was deemed a denial of a scoring chance for New York.
Head referee Alexis Da Silva, asked by a pool reporter to explain the red card decision, replied in an email: “MIA No. 6 committed a deliberate holding offense outside the penalty area considered to deny an obvious goal-scoring opportunity according to the Laws of the Game.”
Ilenic scored on a free kick on a perfectly placed crossing shot, silencing the crowd as jubilant NYCFC players celebrated.
There was another controversial play during first-half extra time. Inter Miami forward Luis Suarez was fouled at midfield by Strahinja Tanasijevic, who was carrying a yellow card, but was not called for another card. The referee explained to the pool reporter: “NYCFC No. 19 committed a careless foul against MIA No. 9. The foul did not rise to a reckless offense requiring that a yellow card is issued.”
The game remained tied at halftime, but New York took a 2-1 lead 10 minutes into the second half. Alba committed a rare blunder, sending a poor pass into the path of Alonso Martinez, who right footed it to the bottom left corner.
As if that weren’t enough bad news for Miami fans, winger Fafa Picault went down untouched with what looked like a serious injury early in the game and Marcelo Weigandt also hobbled off at halftime. Robert Taylor replaced Picault and Fede Redondo went in for Weigandt.
The coach suggested the short turnaround time between games may have contributed to the injuries to Picault and Weigandt.
“This is what happens sometimes when you move games, and people don’t understand [the consequences],” Mascherano said, referring to switching the Champions Cup game from Tuesday to Wednesday and then having to play three days later after arriving home from Kansas at 4 a.m. Thursday. “It was not our fault that it was minus-20 something degrees in Kansas. We asked to move [Saturday’s MLS opener] to Sunday. We were denied, and then you run these risks.
“Fewer than 72 hours ago we played, took a long flight, got home at 5 a.m. The players are not robots. They are human beings. We have to understand that without the players the sport does not exist.”
Messi, who turns 38 in June, looked fit. He went the full 90 minutes in Kansas City and 105 minutes on Saturday.
Joining Messi in the Starting XI against NYCFC: goalkeeper Oscar Ustari, right back Weigandt, center back Aviles, center back Noah Allen, left back Alba, midfielder Benja Cremaschi, midfielder Sergio Busquets, midfielder David Ruiz, winger Picault, and forward Luis Suarez.
Five of the players on the bench were new to the team this season: goalkeeper Rocco Rios Novo, center back Maxi Falcon, defender Gonzalo Lujan, midfielder Segovia, and winger Tadeo Allende, who scored two goals in the preseason.
Other subs included defender Ian Fray, midfielder Fede Redondo, winger Robert Taylor, and forward Leo Afonso. Julian Gressel was not on the game roster, per coach’s decision.
Co-captain Drake Callender, last year’s starting goalkeeper, was not on the game roster as he is not fully recovered from an adductor injury he suffered during U.S. national team camp in January. Yannick Bright (thigh laceration) and David Martinez (ankle) were also missing.
Inter Miami returns to Chase Stadium Tuesday at 8 p.m. to play Sporting KC in the second and decisive leg of the Champions Cup first round.
This story was originally published February 22, 2025 at 7:18 PM.