Messi comes off bench, scores late to lead Inter Miami to 2-0 win at N.Y. Red Bulls

Lionel Messi finally took a break, spending the first 60 minutes on the bench, much to the dismay of all the fans who paid big money to see Inter Miami play on the road against the New York Red Bulls on Saturday night.

“We Want Messi! We Want Messi!” fans chanted loudly for much of the first half and the start of the second.

They finally got their wish and, once again, their Argentine hero delivered, scoring a spectacular goal in the dying minutes, putting a pink exclamation mark on Inter Miami’s 2-0 victory. It was Messi’s 11th goal in nine games since joining the team, his first in an MLS regular season league game, and it extended Miami’s win streak to nine after going winless over 11 games before his arrival.

Red Bull Arena erupted when Messi headed to the corner to warm up early in the second half, cellphone cameras snapped away, and when he took off his lime green vest and stepped onto the field, the place went berserk.

It was impossible to tell which was the home team, as Messi cheers drowned out the Red Bulls faithful and their beating drums.

“It’s pretty surreal to see; he’s probably the only man in the world that can get that kind of respect and reception every stadium he goes to,” said Miami defender Kamal Miller. “From my perspective, of all the cities we’ve been to so far, this has been the city that has appreciated his presence the most, the amount of people outside the hotel and thousands waiting for our arrival at the stadium. It’s pretty amazing and when he got in the game, the reception was great and he deserves it.”

Dozens of celebrities, including Matt Damon, Bad Bunny, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Fat Joe, DMC and many top tennis players in town for the U.S. Open (including Novak Djokovic) were on the guest list for the highly anticipated match, which was also being shown live on a giant screen at Times Square.

The burning question heading into the game was whether Messi would start after playing in all eight games since his arrival, including the full 90 minutes in the past six, and 120 minutes in Wednesday’s U.S. Open semifinal victory.

The answer: No.

Coach Tata Martino chose to rest five regular starters — Messi, Sergio Busquets, Josef Martinez, DeAndre Yedlin and Benjamin Cremaschi. Instead, he loaded the lineup with five Under-22 players: Facundo Farias, Diego Gomez, David Ruiz, Noah Allen and Tomas Aviles.

Messi, Busquets, Martinez, Yedlin and Cremaschi were all on the bench, and available to come in as substitutes. And they all did. Cremaschi combined with Messi for his goal. Messi sent an angled, perfectly-weighted pass through a clot of defenders to Cremaschi, who was making a run on the right side, and the Key Biscayne teenager sent a nifty pass back to his idol, who was unmarked and tapped it in from close range.

Messi sprinted over the Cremaschi and leaped into his arms as the fans went wild. Even Messi’s teammates continue to be impressed by what he can do.

“I just catch myself watching him instead of picking up on my assignment,” Miller said. “It’s tough to stay focused when you have such a great presence in front of you. It’s amazing for MLS and North American football.”

Fans chanted “Messi! Messi” during player introductions before the game and broke into “We Want Messi!” by the sixth minute. Messi sat beside Busquets in the front row of the bench, taking it all in during the first half.

“I have never seen anything like that, but I kind of expected it,” Yedlin said. “When we found out he wasn’t going to be starting, I expected there would be a couple of angry fans. If I was a kid or a fan and I came, I’d want to see the greatest to ever play the game as well. I can’t blame them.”

When Diego Gomez scored for Inter Miami in the 37th minute, Messi cheered for him, as did much of the crowd. But within a minute, the “We Want Messi!” chants continued.

“I understand the desire of the people who want him to play, this will happen everywhere we go,” Martino said. “But as the coach, I cannot be guided by those fans’ desires. My job is to make sure Leo takes care of himself.”

Asked if he was surprised by Messi’s late-game heroics, Martino smiled and said: “Nothing he does is surprising.”

Martino said he explained to Messi before the game that he needed rest, and that he could come in if the game was close, which turned out to be the case. He said he expects Messi to start the next two games against Nashville at home Wednesday and against Los Angeles FC on the road next Sunday.

At least one third of the fans at Red Bull Arena on Saturday night were decked in Miami pink and Messi No. 10 shirts from the Argentine national team and FC Barcelona. Messi merchandise was on sale from the moment fans disembarked onto the Path train platform adjacent to the stadium. All along the streets and into the parking lot, Messi shirts, hats, scarves and pins were for sale.

Large groups of Argentine fans gathered in Messi shirts to enjoy pregame steak barbecues.

After taking a one month hiatus to play cup tournaments, Inter Miami resumed MLS play on the road. It was the league debut for Messi, Busquets, Alba, Farias, Gomez and Aviles, all of whom signed this summer.

Martino had said he might have to rotate starters as players seemed fatigued after a jam-packed schedule over the past month.

Miami played four games in the past 12 days, three of them on the road, and has another three games over the next nine days including Saturday’s win, at home against Nashville on Wednesday and on the road against Los Angeles FC on Sept. 2.

Heading into Saturday’s game, Inter Miami had the worst record in the league with 18 points, and was stuck dead last in the Eastern Conference. Although it will be a tall task for Miami to dig out of the basement and fight for a playoff spot, with the win over the Red Bulls, Miami inched up from 15th place to 14th with 21 points.

Martino and Miller both stressed how important it was for the team to take the lead and hold it through 60 minutes

“Today was a great test starting the game without him and finding ourselves and even if he didn’t score, we would have held the result, 1-0, so it feels good,” Miller said. “Obviously, as a player you hear and see everyone talking about `Oh, Messi’s carrying the team,’ and he’s doing this and that, which is true. I think he carries any team he goes on, so that’s not an insult to us. But playing like that reassures us that we can get the job done, whoever’s on the field.”