Inter Miami, a Major League Soccer (MLS) team, has played two preseason matches so far this year. After defeating Mexico’s Club America in a tiebreaker, Lionel Messi’s team began preparations for the new season. This time, they faced Peru’s Universitario, and once again, the match went to a tiebreaker. Just like the previous match, Messi and Suarez’s team claimed victory.
On Thursday (January 30), in a friendly match at Lima’s Estadio Monumental ‘U’, Miami defeated Universitario 5-4 in a tiebreaker.
Throughout most of the match, Miami had possession of the ball. However, they earned 5 corners compared to 7 by their opponents. Both teams received 2 yellow cards each. Despite multiple attacks, forwards from both teams failed to break through the opposition’s defense and score.
In the 73rd minute of the match, the coach substituted Messi off the field. At the same time, Luis Suárez and Sergio Busquets were also substituted. They were replaced by David Ruiz, Julian Gressel, and Robert Taylor.
After Messi and Suárez left the field, Miami struggled to launch any significant attacks. However, the opponents couldn’t create strong chances either. In the end, when neither side scored, the game went into a penalty shootout after the regular time.
In the penalty shootout, the following players took shots for Inter Miami: Julián Gressel, Santiago Morales, David Ruiz, Benjamin Kremerstchi, and Yannick Bright. Each one of them successfully found the net. On the other hand, Universitario’s Diego Churín, Horacio Calcaterra, Jairo Koncha, and José Rivera scored, but Jairo Vélez missed the third shot. This secured the victory for Miami.
Liberty News‘ sports correspondent reports that next Monday (February 3), at 4 AM Bangladesh time, Messi’s team will face Panama’s club Sporting San Miguelito.
LND/SAKIB
