- Inter Miami beat Orlando City 3-1
- Messi scored twice, received a yellow card
- Coach Martino acknowledged increased friction
WHAT HAPPENED? Messi scored a brace in a 3-1 victory over Orlando City in the Leagues Cup round of 32. However, the Florida derby also saw the Argentine on the receiving end of several harsh challenges from the opposition. On one occasion he pushed Cesar Araujo after being caught by one full-blooded challenge and was later caught in a war of words with Felipe Martins.
Coach Martino admitted that things got heated up and attributed the "friction" to the presence of many South American players on the pitch.
WHAT THEY SAID: "The match the other day [vs. Orlando] was completely different from the previous ones, that is true. There was more friction. I attribute it to the fact that there were many South Americans on the pitch. ... And obviously there is a respect for the best player in the world, but the reality is that over the 90 minutes each team wants to win. And so it was deserving of him to play on the field the way that he did, and it served up notice to say, 'Our team is here, watch out'," he told reporters.
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Messi has been in impressive form at Inter Miami, scoring five times in three matches, but all his exploits have arrived at the DRV PNK Stadium. However, Sunday's Leagues Cup round of 16 game against FC Dallas will be Messi's first test away from home. Nonetheless, Martino is confident that his troops will emerge triumphant as they are a more "complete team" now with the inclusion of Messi & Busquets.
"We expect the typical difficulties of a match like this because you can come out victorious or get eliminated. But we will be visiting with a more complete team. Dallas has players with great potential from midfield to forward. Will have our work cut out for us," he said.
IN TWO PHOTOS:
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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT? If Miami wins against FC Dallas, they will secure a home quarter-final due to the Leagues Cup rule based on 2022 MLS records. The team will face either Charlotte FC or Houston Dynamo in the quarter-finals, who both finished below Miami in the league table in the previous campaign.