Inter Miami loses in tribute to Leo Messi for the death of his father

Inter Miami lost to Monterrey (1-2) in their second Leagues Cup group stage match, a game marked by the absence of forward Leo Messi, who traveled to Argentina to say goodbye to his father, Jorge Messi, who passed away last Thursday in Rosario, and marked by tributes from fans and teammates.

Jorge Messi, who was a very influential figure during the early stages of his son’s career and also served as his agent, passed away in Rosario on Friday night after battling a chronic illness.

Inter Miami observed a minute of silence before the start of their Leagues Cup match while Jorge Messi’s name appeared on the screens at Miami Stadium.

The most moving tribute came from Rodrigo De Paul, Messi’s teammate on the Argentine national team, who opened the scoring for the US team in the 32nd minute and took off his jersey to reveal a Messi shirt with the number 10 underneath.

Before the match, his suspended teammate Luis Suárez shared on Instagram that Messi’s father would be watching over his son “with pride.”

The Messi family had already issued a statement during the World Cup indicating that Jorge Messi was “under medical supervision, recovering and progressing favorably from his condition.”