LIONEL MESSI DAZZLED in his return from injury on Saturday, scoring two goals in the space of four minutes and adding an assist in Inter Miami’s 3-1 Major League Soccer victory over the Philadelphia Union.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner hadn’t played since injuring his right ankle during the Copa America final on 14 July, when he helped Argentina to victory over Colombia.
Since then he had missed eight MLS games for his club and this month’s World Cup qualifiers for his country.
Messi hadn’t played for Inter since 1 June, but he didn’t miss a beat as he was inserted into the starting lineup.
“The truth is that I’m a little tired,” he said after the match. “The heat and humidity in Miami don’t help much either, but I really wanted to come back, I had been off of the field for a long time.
“Little by little I was training with the group, feeling good and that’s why we decided that I would start, and I’m very happy — very happy.”
