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Lionel Messi brings up 50 for Inter Miami successful historical triumph (1:07)
Check retired the champion stats arsenic Lionel Messi scores his 50th extremity for Inter Miami, who instrumentality down FC Porto successful Club World Cup Group A. (1:07)
ESPN News Services
Jun 19, 2025, 05:01 PM ET
Lionel Messi scored his archetypal extremity of the expanded Club World Cup connected Thursday with a patented escaped kick, giving Inter Miami a historical 2-1 triumph implicit over two-time European champion FC Porto connected Thursday.
Messi, 1 of the biggest stars successful the 32-team tournament, was taken down conscionable extracurricular the punishment country by Rodrigo Mora connected a tally down the mediate of the field.
With the assemblage astatine Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium chanting "Messi!" implicit and implicit again, his left-footed blast cleared the Porto partition and ripped the nett successful the apical close country successful the 54th minute.
After a disappointing goalless gully against Egyptian broadside Al Ahly to unfastened the tourney connected Saturday, the triumph was important to Miami's hopes of progressing to the knockout rounds.
"It was a large effort from the full team," Messi told DAZN. "Not lone did we support but we managed the shot well. We had a sour sensation aft the crippled against Al Ahly. This is simply a precise important triumph and we'll bask it.
"It is being seen that we privation to compete, we competed against a bully squad and present and determination we gave distant the archetypal half. The young guys had nerves playing successful this contention for the archetypal time."
Inter Miami trailed 1-0 astatine the interruption aft Samu Omorodion scored connected a punishment footwear successful the opening minutes pursuing a video reappraisal for the Portuguese club's archetypal extremity of the tournament.
But Telasco Segovia tied it 2 minutes into the 2nd fractional disconnected a transverse into the container from from Marcelo Weigandt. Then it was clip for the 37-year-old Argentine to shine.
Messi's onslaught meant Miami became the archetypal Concacaf squad to bushed a European hostile successful a FIFA planetary nine competition. It was besides Messi's 50th Miami extremity successful each competitions, successful his 61st appearance.
The triumph puts Miami level connected points with Palmeiras astatine the apical of Group A up of the 2 teams facing disconnected successful the last circular of radical matches connected Monday. Porto and Al Ahly way connected 1 constituent apiece.
Information from The Associated Press and ESPN's Lizzy Becherano was utilized successful this report.
