Lionel Messi's Miami dream dashed by Atlanta's playoff upset
Bartosz Slisz from Atlanta United scored the winning goal in a 3-2 victory over Inter Miami, which featured Lionel Messi in the lineup. This win advanced his team to the semifinals of the Eastern Conference playoffs in the MLS.
9:54 AM EST, November 10, 2024
The elimination of Inter Miami, the tournament's main favorite and co-owned by David Beckham, turned out to be a significant upset. The team features prominent players like the famous Argentine, along with Uruguayan Luis Suarez and Spaniards Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets.
The team from Florida was the best in the regular season, setting a league record with 74 points and entering the playoffs as the top-seeded team.
Atlanta United finished ninth and had to fight for a playoff spot in an additional qualifying round. In the best-of-three series of the first round, the favorite won the opening match 2-1, but United came back to win the second match by the same score. The decisive showdown took place on Saturday in Fort Lauderdale.
The visitors took the lead twice in the first half, but the home team responded, with Messi scoring to equalize at 2-2 in the 65th minute. In the 76th minute, Bartosz Slisz scored United's third goal with a header, which turned out to be the winner.
During the decisive action, there were some controversies. Inter defender Tomas Aviles was lying in the penalty area, and his teammates were asking the referee to stop the game. However, the whistle remained silent, allowing the opponents to score a goal.
"Inter Miami suffered a stunning first-round elimination from the 2024 Major League Soccer playoffs after falling 3-2 against Atlanta United," summarized ESPN. The official league website noted: "Inter Miami's MLS Cup dream dashed by Atlanta." To illustrate the situation, three photos of a clearly disappointed Messi were presented.
We were accustomed to achieving the goals we set for ourselves, but we won't be able to achieve this most important one," noted Inter Miami's Argentine coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino after the match.
One of the heroes of the match was 40-year-old goalkeeper and captain of the Atlanta team, Brad Guzan. After the Polish midfielder's goal, he made several spectacular saves and ran across the entire field to hug him. "There's some fairy dust in our locker room, man... I couldn't be more proud of our guys," he said to a journalist with a smile.
