On Sunday evening, the LA Galaxy pulled off a feat few groups in MLS have been capable of: They saved Lionel Messi largely quiet for a lot of the evening, simply not the entire evening.
With the Galaxy trying to be on their strategy to a season-opening win over Inter Miami CF at a offered out Dignity Well being Park in Carson, California, Messi popped up in second-half stoppage time to cancel out Dejan Joveljic’s purpose for the Galaxy and salvage a 1-1 draw for his workforce.
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On an evening through which LA welcomed again certainly one of its former stars in Miami co-owner David Beckham, the Galaxy have been a lot much less hospitable to the South Florida membership’s talisman, harrying Messi everywhere in the pitch all through the sport and conserving him off the scoresheet till the sport’s dying minutes.
Inter Miami began with its famed quartet of former Barcelona gamers on the sector — Jordi Alba, Luis Suárez and Sergio Busquets alongside Messi — but it surely was one other product of the membership’s La Masia academy in Ricard Puig that stole the present within the first half.
Puig, who joined the Galaxy in 2022, was in every single place within the opening 45 minutes, distributing the ball to teammates and forcing a goal-saving shot from Miami keeper Drake Callender as the house aspect had the higher of the first-half possibilities.
The 24-year-old Puig additionally had a thirteenth minute penalty saved by Callender after Busquets pulled new Galaxy arrival Joseph Paintsil down from behind within the space and the referee awarded the Galaxy a spot kick.
Messi solely had 27 touches within the first half — his second-fewest touches in a primary half since becoming a member of Inter Miami — and the sport went into the break tied 0-0.
“Within the second half, the workforce began to get higher,” mentioned Miami boss Gerardo Martino. “We started to manage the sport slightly extra, the ball moved extra fluidly. It is true that within the first half, they did dominate [the game]. I believe it was the interval the place Riqui Puig had the ball essentially the most.”
Paintsil continued to trigger issues down the precise wing because the second half started, and as soon as once more Miami had Callender to thank for conserving his workforce within the recreation with a pair of nice saves earlier than the 60-minute mark.
“It is one thing comparable that occurred in lots of video games final yr,” Martino mentioned of Callender. “He was decisive once more, stopped the penalty, blocked some goal-scoring conditions.”
Miami’s finest likelihood of the sport got here within the 69th minute when a Messi free kick bounced off the wall and fell to the ft of Diego Gómez proper in entrance of purpose, however one other new Galaxy arrival — John McCarthy — made a stellar diving cease to maintain the sport scoreless.
The Galaxy lastly discovered a deserved purpose within the seventy fifth minute when Puig’s shot from the highest of the world — on the finish of one more swift counter-attack — was saved to the ft of Mark Delgado, who squared a move to Joveljic to complete into an open web.
Delgado was despatched off minutes later after receiving his second yellow card. Miami took full benefit as Messi picked up a free ball and performed a collection of one-two passes with Alba earlier than smashing a left-footed shot into the highest of the online for his first purpose of the 2024 MLS season.
“When he [Messi] and Alba join like that, it is ridiculous,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney mentioned after the match. “It is actually, actually troublesome to defend and Alba is excellent at discovering Messi when he will get on the transfer like that. Sadly, he simply slipped away from us for a cut up second and that turned the distinction”
Nevertheless, Vanney was much less enthusiastic in regards to the second yellow proven to Delgado for what he labelled a “mushy” foul on Busquets — a name by a substitute referee on obligation due to the continuing lockout of MLS’ common group of officers.
“Actually, actually mushy. I imply, actually mushy,” Vanney mentioned. “It is powerful in a recreation like this, simply the place there’s so many individuals right here to look at the sport and it is a large spectacle too. You gotta watch out with handing out mushy yellows and it finally modifications the sport”
The stadium south of downtown Los Angeles was packed and roiling with pleasure two hours earlier than Messi’s first recreation in opposition to the Galaxy, a five-time MLS champion franchise lengthy often known as the popular vacation spot for superstars of Europe searching for a brand new house after reaching their mid-30s.
Beckham, who catalyzed MLS’ progress together with his transfer to the Galaxy in 2007, has a statue outdoors the workforce’s stadium. He is additionally a main motive for Inter’s ascent to the function lengthy occupied by the Galaxy, which employed the likes of Robbie Keane, Steven Gerrard and Zlatan Ibrahimovic late of their careers.
The joy round this match was a thrill for MLS Commissioner Don Garber.
“It kind of represents every thing we needed this sport to be, and have labored so laborious for thus a few years,” mentioned Garber, who met with Beckham and Galaxy proprietor Phil Anschutz earlier than the sport. “Everyone is working laborious to construct on this momentum.
“To me, that is very a lot about the place we have been in 2007 and the place we’re in the present day.”
The Galaxy journey to San Jose for his or her subsequent match, a California Classico in opposition to the Earthquakes on March 2, whereas Miami returns house to host intrastate rival Orlando Metropolis on the identical day.
Info from The Related Press was used on this story.
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