WATCH: Lionel Messi scores for Inter Miami on his MLS debut

Lionel Messi has already set the American stage on fire since he arrived in Miami to play for David Beckham-owned Major League Soccer Outfit Inter Miami. Since his arrival, Inter Miami won their first piece of silverware in club history in the form of the League’s Cup. Messi played a crucial role in their campaign with 10 goals in eight appearances. He was kept out of the starting XI for this game and yet it was his goal that made headlines the next day.

Messi came on in the 60^th minute with former Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets. It took him less than half an hour to mark his debut with a glorious team goal. When he entered the pitch, Inter Miami had already gone ahead via Diego Gomez’s spot kick in the 37^th minute. Messi added another in the 89^th minute as the team defeated the New York Red Bulls by 2-0.

Jordi Alba acrobatically hooked the ball onto Messi who was lurking inside the box from the left-hand position. Messi found Benjamin Cremaschi with a sublime outside-of-the-boot pass. Cremaschi’s first-time low-cross was easily tapped in by Messi to seal the deal and put the curtains on a great outing for the Pink Outfit.

Here’s the viral video:

‘I just catch myself watching him…’ – Inter Miami defender Kamal Miller

Miami players opened up on the magical moment after the match. “I just catch myself watching him instead of picking up on my assignment,” Miami defender Kamal Miller said. “It’s tough to stay focused when you have such a great presence. It’s pretty surreal to see. He’s probably the only man in the world that can get that kind of respect and reception every stadium he goes to,” Miller added.

“When we found out that he wouldn’t be starting, I expected there was going to be a couple of angry fans,” Miami right-back DeAndre Yedlin said. “But if I was a kid or a fan and I came, I would want to see the greatest to ever play the game, as well, so I can’t blame them,” he added.