DALLAS-. Lionel Messi had three shots on goal before exiting early in the second half in the loss of Inter Miami 1-0 against him FC Dallas in a preseason game MLS at the Cotton Bowl on Monday night.
Messi took three shots in the first half and left the game about 15 minutes into the second period with Inter Miami trailing in front of an announced crowd of 32,221 in a game played in drizzle and 40 degrees (4 degrees Celsius).
Forward Jesús Ferreira scored with a free kick three minutes into the game to give FC Dallas an early lead that held.
Messi’s first two shots were saved by goalkeeper Maarten Paes, who dove to his left to deflect Messi’s second shot in the 12th minute. Messi’s third shot went wide to the left in the 27th minute.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner scored two goals in Inter Miami’s comeback victory over FC Dallas on August 6 at Toyota Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Frisco. FC Dallas moved 30 miles north in 2009 after playing its first 13 MLS seasons in the Cotton Bowl, which hosted the 1994 World Cup.
“We have very good memories here of 1994, when the Netherlands beat Brazil,” said Paes, who is from the Netherlands. “It’s very historic and beautiful. I love playing in this stadium. The atmosphere was fantastic and the course was perfect.”
Uruguayan star Luis Suárez, who teamed up with Messi at FC Barcelona from 2014 to 2020, played his first game on American soil since joining Inter Miami in December. Suárez had two shots on goal in the first half, the first saved by Paes. The second went wide in the 44th minute.
Inter Miami failed to score in its second consecutive preseason game after a 0-0 draw against El Salvador on Friday.
FC Dallas held off a flurry of shots in the second half behind a pair of substitute goalkeepers: Jimmy Maurer and Antonio Carrera.
“Being able to play against Lionel Messi is an incredible opportunity,” FC Dallas president Dan Hunt said before the match. “For most people, he is a never. Most markets never get to carry him… you have the best chance of all time, maybe with the exception of Pelé, and you can have him twice in your market. “We hosted at our house once and then we get to share with a different part of the community in Dallas.”
Messi, 36, arrived in Miami last July and scored 10 goals in seven games. He led the club to its first trophy by winning the Leagues Cup final on 19 August.
Inter Miami will travel to Saudi Arabia to face Al Hilal next Monday and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr on February 2.
Source: AP
