Messi Stars as Atlanta loses to Inter Miami 2-1

Lionel Messi had repeated opportunities to score but was continually denied. Ultimately, the breakthrough came from delivering the perfect pass at the right moment. In the 60th minute, Jordi Alba converted a Messi pass to score the go-ahead goal, followed by a goal from Luis Suarez, leading Inter Miami to a 2-1 win over Atlanta United in the opening game of their best-of-three first-round Major League Soccer playoff series.

This was no easy start for Inter Miami, the Supporters' Shield winners and the No. 1 seed in the MLS Cup playoffs. They set a league record with 74 points in the regular season, a full 34 points ahead of Atlanta in the standings.

Atlanta’s Saba Lobjanidze scored, and their goalkeeper Brad Guzan recorded eight saves. Game 2 will take place on Nov. 2 in Atlanta, marking Inter Miami’s last road game of the season. If necessary, Game 3 will follow on Nov. 9 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

“It’s going to be difficult for us,” said Inter Miami coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino. “This rival has been challenging all season.”

Inter Miami, which clinched the top playoff seed, set an MLS record with 74 points. The sold-out home playoff game marked Messi’s MLS playoff debut, and as usual, fans around the world tuned in, with MLS streaming a camera focused on Messi throughout the match on TikTok. Although an event to show the game in Times Square was canceled, Apple plans to screen another match there in the future.

Atlanta is the only team to defeat Inter Miami with Messi in the lineup this season, a factor that eight-time Ballon d'Or winner and MLS MVP finalist Messi seemed to anticipate.

“Anything can happen in a match,” Messi remarked in an interview taped before the playoffs.

For the first 60 minutes, the score reflected that. Suarez scored within the opening minute, and Messi created three quality chances in the first half. After only six minutes, Guzan made a sprawling save against Messi, and a strong shot in the 26th minute forced Guzan to punch it over the bar. In the 29th, Messi’s shot hit the post, and Guzan blocked the rebound attempt by Inter Miami’s Marcelo Weigandt. If not for Guzan, the score might have been significantly higher for Miami.

Instead, it was 1-1 at halftime after Lobjanidze scored from close range in the 39th minute.

“We were frustrated,” Martino said.

Messi nearly reclaimed the lead for Miami with a free kick in the 52nd minute that curled just wide. The decisive goal came eight minutes later, with Messi and Alba celebrating jubilantly.

“We’ve got to keep our heads up and go again,” Guzan said. “We’ve had our backs against the wall for quite some time, and we’ve found a way.”

The night took a somber turn for Miami, however, when Ian Fray, a South Florida native who has battled three ACL tears, suffered a non-contact injury in the 90th minute and was unable to bear weight on his right leg.

“It was a very good game,” said Martino, “but we’re not feeling as satisfied as we could because of Ian’s injury. We are all a little sad. We’ll wait to see what the injury is.”