With 2 assists from Messi, Inter Miami defeated LAFC 3-1 [VIDEO].

The young Argentine forward Facundo Farías opened the scoring in the 14th minute before Messi assisted for the goals of Spanish Jordi Alba in the 51st minute and Ecuadorian Leonardo Campana in the 83rd minute, while Ryan Hollingshead reduced the lead for the hosts in the 90th minute.

With this victory against the reigning MLS champion, Inter is moving closer to its goal of qualifying for the North American playoffs.

Inter, which was in last place overall before Messi's arrival in July, is currently in 14th place in the Eastern Conference with 25 points, 8 points behind the playoff zone.

Los Angeles, United States | AFP | Monday, September 3, 2023 - 23:11 UTC-5 | 407 words

With two assists from Lionel Messi, Inter Miami won 3-1 against Los Angeles FC at its stadium on Sunday night, where a collection of celebrities paraded to see the best player in the world.

The young Argentine forward Facundo Farías opened the scoring in the 14th minute before Messi assisted for the goals of Spanish Jordi Alba in the 51st minute and Ecuadorian Leonardo Campana in the 83rd minute, while Ryan Hollingshead reduced the lead for the hosts in the 90th minute.

With this victory against the reigning MLS champion, Inter is moving closer to its goal of qualifying for the North American playoffs.

Inter, which was in last place overall before Messi's arrival in July, is currently in 14th place in the Eastern Conference with 25 points, 8 points behind the playoff zone.

The DC United currently holds the last playoff spot provisionally, ninth with 33 points, having played two more games than Inter.

Messi's first game in Los Angeles (California) attracted a crowd of personalities, including Prince Harry and film stars like Leonardo Di Caprio and music stars like Selena Gomez.

Led by Mexican Carlos Vela, LAFC started the game strongly and had very clear chances to take the lead through Denis Bouanga.

The Gabonese striker missed two one-on-ones with goalkeeper Drake Callender and frustrated Vela for not assisting him when he was completely unmarked on a counterattack.

Inter made them pay for the mistakes when a long pass from the young Argentine defender Tomás Avilés landed at the edge of the box of his compatriot Farías, whose crossed shot surprised goalkeeper John McCarthy.

Inter sealed the victory in the second half with two actions originating from Messi's feet.

Just like in his best days at Barcelona, the Argentine captain made a brilliant assist for the incursion of Alba on the left side, who shot past the goalkeeper.

And when LAFC was pushing forward in Miami's area, Messi led a counterattack in which he enabled the arrival of Campana, who resolved with a strong cross shot to seal the victory.

The hosts could only score a consolation goal in injury time with a powerful header from defender Ryan Hollingshead.

Inter remains unbeaten in the 11 games since Messi's debut, a period in which they won the Leagues Cup, the tournament jointly organized with the Mexican league.