Claims of Lionel Messi freekick goal against Cruz Azul in his debut for Inter Miami has received backlash and claims of it being scripted.
Messi joined Inter Miami after leaving Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer and his unveiling became the most watched football event in history with over 3.5 billion views.
The world cup winner made his debut against Mexican side, Cruz Azul coming on in the 54th minute. He had a ton of good display before going on to net a stunning freekick in the 94th minute.
Just as celebrations trails around, praising Messi’s superb football quality, critics are also swimming in.
Claims of Cruz Azul goalkeeper not giving a full stretch when trying to catch the shot from Messi hence leading to the goal are all over. Adding that it was scripted to make Messi’s debut look so special.
Messi's free-kick goal against Cruz Azul was scr!pted; He's a great player, but anyone who's truthful can see the goalkeeper barely made an attempt to catch the ball, which is odd since that was a crucial moment. The MLS & Inter Miami wanted to make his debut special. No offense.
— Daniel Regha (@DanielRegha) July 22, 2023
Messi reacting to his debut goal said;
Last minute winning goal? Well, I tried the freekick shot as I always do. I was lucky that it was a goal. I am very happy.
Messi will look to play his first ever MLS match in the coming days.
