With two goals from Jo o Neves for Paris Saint-Germain, the world’s top team humiliated Lionel Messi and Inter Miami 4-0 in Sunday’s round of 16 of the Club World Cup, defeating one of the greatest players in history.
The European champions swiftly dashed the Herons’ hopes of pulling off a historic shock in front of 65,574 spectators at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, where Messi was playing against the team he played for two seasons before switching to Major League Soccer in the latter stages of his illustrious career.
Neves converted a header at the back post from a free kick to score his first goal just six minutes into the game. Before Inter Miami completely collapsed in the last moments of the first half, giving up an own goal and then watching helplessly as Achraf Hakimi added another in stoppage time to send PSG to the locker room with a four-goal lead, the Portuguese midfielder scored another in the 39th minute.
It brought back memories of PSG’s spectacular 5-0 thumping of Inter Milan in the Champions League final one month ago, when the Paris team won its first European championship and became the overwhelming favorite going into the enlarged Club World Cup.
The pink-clad supporters occasionally chanted “Messi” in an attempt to get No. 10 to pay attention! Messi! Messi!, but it didn’t do much. With PSG players all around him and no opportunity to touch the ball, the Argentine star stayed in the midfield for the whole of the first half.
Early in the second half, Inter Miami had their best opportunity. Luis Surez was free at the side of the net after a pass, but the ball went off his foot without a shot. To cap off the day for the Herons, the 38-year-old striker kicked a water bottle over the fence out of fury.
In the 63rd minute, Messi eventually got Inter Miami’s first shot on goal, but goalie Gianluigi Donnarumma comfortably stopped it. With roughly ten minutes left, Messi had another header attempt, putting Donnarumma in danger of losing his third shutout of the tournament and forcing him to make a diving save.
Next Saturday, in Atlanta, PSG will play either Flamengo or Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals.
Crucial moment
At the conclusion of a demanding season, the European powerhouses showed little enthusiasm for the additional workload going into this competition. However, PSG looked determined to win the Club World Cup to top off an already outstanding season from the very first kick.
Key Takeaways
The MLS team wasn’t on par with the European champions, even with older international players like Messi and Suarez.
PSG’s intense pressure made it difficult for Inter Miami to even get the ball out of its own half.
In the first half, PSG had 73% of the ball and outshot the Herons 10-0, including six shots on goal.
They stated it.
We played a great game. We continued. We continued to play our game. For us, it was a good day. Neves.
In a way, the first half was a carnage. However, I am really pleased with my team and our achievements. Javier Mascherano, coach of Inter Miami, via interpreter.
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