VIDEO: Furious Lionel Messi restrained in tunnel by Luis Suarez after Inter Miami's defeat to LAFC

Messi was back from injury for the game against LAFC but unable to make an impact as Inter Miami kicked off a new season with a 3-0 defeat. It's a poor start to their title defence for the Herons and tempers flared afterwards. A visibly angry Messi was spotted storming through a door as Suarez tried to pull him back, per TyC Sports. MLS was originally made aware of the incident as it was suggested that Messi had appeared to enter the referees' premises, but the Argentine forward actually did not walk through a restricted area.

Professional referee organization director of communications Chris Rivett has confirmed to ESPN that Messi did not unlawfully enter the referees' area. "After speaking with match officials, we can confirm he did not enter the premises," said Rivett.

Inter Miami boss Javier Mascherano said when quizzed on the incident: "No, no, no I didn't see anything. The truth is that the match finished and then I went into the locker room."

Mascherano added on his team's disappointing performance: "They beat us fair and square, that's the reality. My initial analysis gives me the feeling that it's a somewhat misleading result; the game itself didn't show that difference. Clearly, Los Angeles made the difference in terms of transitions; they hurt us a lot. We're not going to make a tragedy out of it either; we know we have to improve, we have to keep emphasizing the positive things we've done."

Messi did not violate league policy and will therefore not face any punishment from the MLS Disciplinary Committee. Inter Miami and Messi will go in search of their first win of the new season next time out against Orlando City.