SPORTS
How PSG rout Messi’s Inter Miami to secure Club World Cup quarter-final slot
João Neves scored twice as Paris Saint-Germain swept aside Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami 4-0 at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sunday to secure their place in the Club World Cup quarterfinals with ruthless efficiency.
The French side asserted dominance within six minutes, with Neves moving unmarked to the far post to power home a precise header from a free kick. Neves doubled PSG’s lead in the 39th minute following a well-worked attack involving Bradley Barcola and Fabián Ruiz, whose exquisite cross was clinically converted by the Portuguese. Any hopes of a Miami comeback were extinguished in the first half as Messi & Co. barely got a look in, and their misery deepened further when Tomás Avilés scored an own goal before Achraf Hakimi added a fourth on the stroke of halftime.
“It was an almost perfect match, we created a lot of chances, and I’m happy yet I think we still need to improve, that’s football,” PSG coach Luis Enrique said.
Messi became more involved after the break and his header was saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma following a quick counter-attack, while he struck the wall with a late free kick that brought the crowd to their feet in anticipation of a consolation goal that never materialized.
The pink-clad fans tried to stir No. 10 with occasional chants of “Messi! Messi! Messi!” but it did little good. The Argentine star spent most of the first half just lingering in the midfield, surrounded by PSG players and barely getting a chance to touch the ball.
Inter Miami’s best chance came early in the second half. A pass to Luis Suárez sent him clear at the side of the net, but the ball slid harmlessly off his foot without a shot. The 38-year-old striker kicked a water bottle over the barrier in frustration, summing up the day for the Herons.
“I’m very proud of my players. Today you could see the difference in class, but football has given us the chance to compete. This is probably the best team in the world with a great coach, but we took them on,” Miami coach Javier Mascherano said.
The Champions League winners march on to the quarterfinals, where they will face the winners of the clash between Flamengo and Bayern Munich.
