In the match that took place at the Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Messi scored one goal and contributed one assist for Inter Miami; nonetheless, the American team was defeated by Al Hilal by a score of 3-4.

Stars that have played in Europe, such as Aleksandar Mitrovic, Renan Lodi, Ruben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, and Malcom, were all in the starting lineup for Al Hilal’s friendly match against Inter Miami. The match was played with the greatest team possible. Because of his injury, Neymar was not present. The fact that he was in Brazil prevented him from seeing this match in real time.

Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi, both strikers, Sergio Busquets, who played in the middle of the field, and Jordi Alba, who played defense, were all members of the Inter Miami team that took the field.

Messi plays in a friendly match against Al Hilal (Photo: Getty).

Having the advantage of playing at home, Al Hilal began with self-assurance. It took the home team only thirteen minutes to score two goals against Inter Miami, with Mitrovic scoring the first goal and Abdullah Al-Hamddan scoring the second goal to double the home team’s leading tally. 

The Uruguayan player Suarez scored the first goal for the new side, which was a reward for the efforts of the away team, which resulted in the team scoring the goal. When Messi kicked the ball into the net for the home team in the first half, it appeared as though Inter Miami had equalized the score. The offside rule prevented the referee from recognizing the goal, which was a great disappointment. The goal scored by Michael Delgado allowed Al Hilal to close the distance between them and their opponents by two goals just before the intermission.

Approximately ten minutes into the first half, Inter Miami managed to bring the score to 3-3 once again. Following his successful execution of the penalty kick, Messi quickly provided assistance to David Ruiz in order to bring the match back to the starting line. 

Messi successfully took the penalty kick (Photo: Getty).

Only the home team was able to capitalize on the potential to win, despite the fact that both teams had a chance to do so. Malcolm surged forward in the 88th minute to seize a pass from Yasir Al Shahrani and then headed the ball beyond the goalie Drake Callender, therefore ensuring that Al Hilal would emerge victorious by a score of 4-3. 

As a result of this setback, Miami is still without a win in the preseason after participating in three matches. The team coached by Gerardo Martino has drawn with El Salvador and lost to FC Dallas. During each of Miami’s preseason matches, Messi has been playing an increasing amount of minutes. He was taken out of the game in the 87th minute, shortly before Malcolm scored the game-winning goal.

Messi talked with coach Martino after he was taken off the field (Photo: Getty).

According to reports, Al-Hilal had the intention of signing Messi after he graduated from Paris Saint-Germain and became a free agent in the previous year. In the end, Messi made the decision to relocate to the United States in order to join David Beckham’s Inter Miami club. He was able to rapidly guide the team to its first championship, which was the Leagues Cup.

The preparations for Messi and Inter Miami’s 2024 season include a lengthy trip of Asia, which will include visits in Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, and Japan. Messi and Inter Miami aspire to achieve even more success in the upcoming season.

On Thursday, Miami will play its second match in Saudi Arabia, which will be against Al Nassr, who is coached by Cristiano Ronaldo. Because of his recent injury, it is uncertain whether or not the Portuguese superstar will be able to play.