By Canadian Press

Lionel Messi makes his Inter Miami debut, checks in during 2nd half against Cruz Azul

Jul 21, 2023 | 6:44 PM

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Lionel Messi is now, officially, an Inter Miami player.

The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner as the world’s best player checked in for his new Major League Soccer club for the first time on Friday night, coming in early in the second half of Inter Miami’s game against Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup tournament.

He hugged the player he was replacing, midfielder Benjamin Cremaschi, then trotted onto the field as the estimated crowd of 21,000 all seemed to be standing, almost all of them with phones out to chronicle the moment.

It took Inter Miami four years of planning and two years of actual pursuing to bring Messi to the club.

“Worth it,” co-owner David Beckham said earlier in the week.

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Messi wasn’t in the starting lineup, and came on with his team leading 1-0. Nobody even left their seats when the halftime whistle blew. The reason: Messi was on the field. He warmed up for about 5 minutes during intermission with the other reserves before they all left for the locker room.

That’s when the fans, finally, could put their phones down and take a breath. Temporarily, anyway. The wait was officially on: When was Messi coming in? He resumed warmups while the second half was getting under way, jogging around behind the end line near Miami’s supporter section, and fans roared in delight when he gave them a wave.

And about eight minutes into the second half, the answer: It was Messi time.

The first Inter Miami goal of the Messi era was scored by Robert Taylor, who took a long cross from Robbie Robinson, moved into the box and sent a low drive off the inside of the far post and into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead late in the first half.

Messi leaped from his seat, threw his hands in the air, applauded several times and broke into a wide smile.

Team officials said all tickets — about 21,000, in a newly expanded stadium — were sold.

Messi arrived with the team about two hours before game time, dressed in the team colors — pink T-shirt, black shorts. He stopped for a few photos and handshakes as he entered the tunnel leading to the locker room.

He got a hug and shared a few words with LeBron James — another guy who knows a thing or two about making a highly celebrated move to Miami, after he joined the Heat in 2010 and won his first two NBA titles in a four-year stay — on his way to the bench. Messi took his seat and watched his new team, in the all-pink jersey, shorts and socks, start his new era.

Almost every seat was filled, many by people wearing newly acquired Miami jerseys with Messi’s name on the back. They chanted his name a few times, waved flags bearing his name and number.

It was a bit of a mystery in recent days how much Messi, a World Cup champion for Argentina and someone who Beckham calls the best player ever, would be on the field in his debut. New coach Tata Martino said he would leave that decision up to Messi, who hasn’t played much of late and is working his way back into match shape.

Messi signed a 2 1/2-year contract with Inter Miami that will pay him between $50 million and $60 million annually — and almost certainly more than $1 million per match. Some fans paid well over $1,000 for tickets to Friday’s match, though the price on the resale market was dropping considerably in the hours before game time.

Messi was introduced to his new home fans on Sunday and trained for the first time as a member of the club Tuesday.

Also not in Friday’s starting lineup: newly acquired Sergio Busquets, a former Messi teammate and another past World Cup winner.

Beckham was on the field about three hours before game time, taking a video with his phone as he scanned the empty seats. Messi jerseys were stocked at the team store inside the stadium, and entrepreneurs were selling unofficial Messi jerseys on the road leading to the venue.

It was a gathering of GOATs at Messi’s debut match: James and Serena Williams were there — like Messi in soccer, they’re in the conversation of “greatest of all time” when it comes to the NBA and tennis. Music legends Gloria and Emilio Estefan were there, as was Kim Kardashian, saying one of her sons had a particular reason why he had to attend.

“He’s so excited to see Messi,” Kardashian said.

No matter what, it was a massive night for soccer in the U.S. — Messi making his first Major League Soccer appearance while, on the other side of the globe, the U.S. women’s team opened its World Cup title defense in New Zealand against Vietnam.

Messi decided in June to join Inter Miami. He considered a return to Barcelona, the club with which he spent most of his career, after spending the last two seasons with Paris Saint-Germain.

But Inter Miami and MLS found a way to land the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, setting the stage for an unprecedented era for the club that has largely sputtered during its first four seasons.

The Leagues Cup is a tournament between clubs from MLS and Liga MX, the top Mexican league. Cruz Azul won the inaugural version in 2019.

Neither club has enjoyed much success this season. Inter Miami has the fewest points in the MLS standings; Cruz Azul is the only team in the Mexican league yet to record a standings point through the season’s first three matches.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press