Lionel Messi scored his 100th goal for Inter Miami as the Major League Soccer side beat Mexican club Cruz Azul 2-0 to win the Campeones Cup at Nu Stadium in Florida on Wednesday.
Messi, making his 115th appearance for Miami, struck 24 minutes into the annual match between the MLS Cup holders and Mexico’s Campeon de Campeones winners.
Casemiro scored Miami’s second goal late on.
“Leo told me he’d make me a champion, so he kept his word,” Miami coach Cristian Gonzalez said.
Former Barcelona and Paris St Germain forward Messi, 39, joined Miami in 2023 and has helped them win four trophies.
Argentina’s all-time top scorer with 125 goals.
The Barcelona legend was on Tuesday named in Argentina’s squad for a friendly against Benin on October 6, a match that will serve as his farewell appearance after announcing his international retirement last month.
The 39-year-old said in August he was retiring from Argentina duty after a two-decade international career that included winning the 2022 World Cup and Copa America triumphs in 2021 and 2024.
Messi has been included in the squad for the third match against Benin, when he is expected to make his 208th and final appearance for the national team. He is Argentina’s all-time record scorer with 125 goals.
Following the death of his father Jorge last month, Messi had said he had “serious doubts” about continuing to play football of any sort for “much longer”.
“It was a decision that hurt and still hurts deep in my soul but I understand that it is the right time,” Messi said when he called time on his Argentina career.
His contract with Major League Soccer club Inter Miami runs until the end of the 2028 season.
Source: Khaleej Times