MLS: Messi scores, but Inter Miami suffer shocking first-round playoff exit

Inter Miami’s 2024 Major League Soccer playoff run came to a shocking end as they fell 3-2 to Atlanta United in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference series.

Despite Lionel Messi’s equalizer in the second half, Miami couldn’t hold off Atlanta, who clinched the victory with a 76th-minute header from Bartosz Slisz.

Miami, led by Messi and former Barcelona teammates Luis Suárez, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba, entered the playoffs as the top seed after a record-breaking season.

However, the match exposed defensive gaps, and Miami’s appeals for referee intervention were dismissed when defender Tomás Avilés was down injured during Atlanta’s winning goal.

The Herons, who picked 79 goals in the season and had high hopes with stars like Messi, were visibly frustrated, especially after denied calls for a penalty and an offside.

Miami’s elimination continued the club’s struggles in the MLS playoffs, with the team never advancing past the first round in its history.

The loss also extended a trend in MLS where the top-seeded teams rarely win the MLS Cup, which has happened only four times in the past 22 seasons.