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Lionel Messi scores dramatic late winner on his Inter Miami debut vs Cruz Azul

Lionel Messi scores dramatic late winner on his Inter Miami debut vs Cruz Azul

Inter Miami had gone 11 games without a win, until Leo Messi arrived.

Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami Live: Leagues Cup LIVE – CAZ vs MIA LIVE – It was inevitable. Wasn’t it? As Lionel Messi scored a late winner via a brilliant free-kick on his Inter Miami debut. Earlier, Uriel Antuna had restored the parity after Robert Taylor gave the lead to Miami. Coming off the bench, Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets marked their debuts in the second half.

The MLS and Liga MX halt as the 3rd edition of the Leagues Cup commences. The tournament began with the opening match between the Liga MX team Cruz Azul and the MLS team Inter Miami. Cruz Azul are sitting at the bottom of the current Liga MX table. Similarly, Inter Miami are sitting at the bottom of the current MLS Eastern Conference table.

Also read: Barcelona legend Hristo Stoichkov backs Lionel Messi for making Inter Miami move

Cruz Azul are having a tough time as their domestic league started at the start of the month. They have played 3 matches and lost all three of them. Atlas got the better of Cruz Azul in their opening match by defeating them by a 2-0 margin. Cruz Azul lost their second match by another 2-0 margin against Toluca. They not only could not produce clear opportunities against both Toluca and Atlas, but they also played with one man down against Toluca. 

Cruz Azul finally managed to score a goal in their third Liga MX fixture and latest match against Tijuana. They even took the lead in this match with a goal just before the halftime break. However, that was the end of fortune favouring them. Tijuana equalised in the 57th minute. 2 minutes into the injury time, an own goal by Abonia denied Cruz Azul their first Liga MX victory. They now sit in the last place on the league table. They at least have the record of winning the first edition of the Leagues Cup in 2019.

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However, with Lionel Messi rumoured to make his debut for their opponent Inter Miami, it’s doubtful how much that record with help them. Inter Miami last won a match back in early June in the US Open Cup against Birmingham Legion. Their last MLS win came back on May 14 against New England Revolution. It’s no wonder that similar to Cruz Azul, Inter Miami are also dwelling at the bottom place of the MLS Eastern Conference table. However, they are approaching the Leagues Cup with two aces. 

World Cup winner Argentina captain Lionel Messi and his former Barcelona teammate, another World Cup winner Spanish Sergio Busquets were unveiled as Inter Miami players only a few days ago. Messi could be making his debut in this match along with Busquets. New coach Gerardo Martino led the team to a 3-0 defeat against St. Louis City in his first match. It’s still unclear if Messi and Busquets will play, but if they do, that could give the team some major firepower to perform better. 

Cruz Azul Form in All Competitions 

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Inter Miami Form in All Competitions

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Cruz Azul Team News 

  • Coach Ricardo Ferretti started the season with a 4-2-3-1 formation. However, seeing that the formation didn’t dish out any fruitful results, he changed it to a 3-4-2-1 formation. That dished out the same result as the first match, so the coach went back to his familiar 4-2-3-1 formation. It is tough to know which way he’ll choose to go in the Leagues Cup. 
  • Sebastian Jurado received a red in the 39th minute of the second Liga MX match against Toluca. He served his suspension in their last match against Tijuana. The coach lined up Andres Gudino under the goalpost in Jurado’s place. That suspension will not carry to the Leagues Cup anyway. Hence, it can be expected that he will be back for their match against Inter Miami.
  • In the chance of Messi and Busquets playing, the coach could be lining up his strongest team. They finally scored after 2 goalless Liga MX matches with a goal from Rivero, so he could be starting the match. Abonia’s own goal denied them a minimum draw in the last moments of the match. The coach will be desperate to avoid another similar mistake. Hence, he could bring back Lotti in his place.

Inter Miami Team News

  • Inter Miami’s managing owner, Jorge Mas previously declared that Lionel Messi will make his debut in this match and Sergio Busquets could also make his debut with him. New coach Martino has already made changes to his formation. However, it failed and he might have to change it to 3-4-3 again to include both players if they play against Cruz Azul. 
  • Even though the match featured regular scorer Josef Martinez, the match still remained goalless. To accommodate Messi, he could bench Nicolas Stefanelli on the right and could replace David Ruiz in the midfield with Busquets. Josef Martinez could start in the central attacking position with Rodolfo Pizarro on the left. The coach could line up the rest of the team in the same way.
  • Noah Allen and Benjamin Cremaschi scored their first-ever MLS goal against DC United. However, even they could not score any goals in the last match. It could be that the new formation by coach Martino did not work, but they will be hoping for improvement if Messi and Busquets get involved. The defensive duo Kamal Miller and DeAndre Yedlin could remain as substitutes.

Also read: Wayne Rooney says Harry Kane is ‘being held as prisoner’ at Tottenham Hotspur

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Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami Probable XI

Cruz Azul Predicted XI: Gudino; Escobar, Ditta, Salcedo, Rivero; Castano, Lira; Rotondi, Tabo, Moises; Lotti

Inter Miami Predicted XI: Callender; Allen, Kryvtsov, Fray; Taylor, Arroyo, Busquets, Cremaschi; Pizarro, Messi, Stefanelli

Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami LIVE: When and where to watch the LIVE streaming of Leagues Cup matches?

When will Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami kick off in Leagues Cup? – Date

CAZ vs MIA match will be played on 22th July 2023

What time will Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami kick-off? Time

CAZ vs MIA will begin at 5:30 AM IST

Where will Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami be played? – Venue

The game will kick off at the DRV PNK Stadium.

Leagues Cup LIVE: When and where to watch the live streaming?

Where to watch Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami in India?

MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app

How do I watch live streaming of Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami?

Leagues Cup – Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami will be available for streaming on MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app. The pass and the app are available on Apple devices, smart TVs, streaming devices from Roku, Amazon, and Google, game consoles, and the web at tv.apple.com.

Which TV Channel will telecast Cruz Azul vs Inter Miami live?

Unfortunately, the match will not be telecast on any TV Channel. However, all the Leagues Cup matches will be broadcasted on the MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app.

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