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Inter Miami’s horrible preseason tour had its next devasting chapter on Wednesday in Japan as the Herons lost to J-League side Vissel Kobe 4-3 on penalties, Sergio Busquets suffered a nasty injury and Lionel Messi laughed at a teammate for missing a penalty.
Messi laughing at Robert Taylor’s missed penalty kick was one of the most discussed moments of the friendly game.
After drawing 0-0 the game went to penalty kicks and 29-year-old Taylor marched up to take Miami’s fourth kick. Taylor’s first shot was saved however Vissel Kobe’s goalkeeper stepped off his line so the penalty had to be retaken.
Taylor retook the penalty and blasted it off the crossbar on his second attempt. The cameras cut to Messi and the Miami star was seen laughing.
Messi laughs at teammate after missed penalty
— MOROCCO OWNED PENDU (@Pace1052375) February 7, 2024
Lionel Messi saw the funny side of watching his Inter Miami teammate Robert Taylor miss two penalties in a row during their loss to Japanese side Kobe
Despite the shootout going into sudden death, the Argentine didn’t fancy taking one pic.twitter.com/qcWjrjpnIa— SPORTbible (@sportbible) February 7, 2024
Messi came on as a substitute in the 60th minute and didn’t take one of Miami’s five penalty kicks. Soccer fans online were critical of the Argentine calling him an unsupportive teammate for his reaction.
Messi’s stock in China has also plummeted after he didn’t come off the bench for the friendly in Hong Kong on Sunday which enraged Chinese fans.
INTER MIAMI BOOED OFF THE FIELD IN CHINA
The mood in Hong Kong turned sour after Messi didn't play in the #InterMiamiCF friendly. 40,000 fans chanted "Refund refund refund" and "Where is Messi?" (who sat on the bench). Beckham also booed post-match.pic.twitter.com/gjnbEfSRUr— World Soccer Talk (@worldsoccertalk) February 4, 2024
The Argentine said he felt discomfort in his hip adductor which is why he didn’t play in Hong Kong. He clearly felt better in Tokyo as he played for 30 minutes.
Inter Miami will finally head back home after a world tour that featured stops in El Salvador, Dallas, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and Japan. The team’s final friendly will be against Messi’s boyhood club Newell’s Old Boys in Miami.
The tour has been grueling on the players as Busquets was the latest player to pick up an injury and needed to be taken out of the Vissel Kobe game in the 25th minute.
— Out Of Context Football (@nocontextfooty) February 7, 2024
Messi spoke in Tokyo saying he can’t wait for the tour to be over.
"I’m a little tired from this whole tour, (I have) a desire to finish up the last game and to return home," Messi said during a press conference.
Miami’s preseason tour has left a sour taste in the mouth of just about everyone. The club managed to win just one game along the way and gave a poor reflection of Major League Soccer to the world.
Fans of other MLS clubs are sick of seeing Miami on their TV screens and it sounds like the Miami players have also had enough of the preseason.
This blatant money grab tour has only exhausted a team who start the regular season on Feb. 21.
What a disaster.
