'The God of Football, Shaken by the Grief of His Father's Passing,' Messi Misses Penalty in Third Consecutive Match, 'Shock'... Inter Miami Also Suffers Heavy Defeat

*This content was translated by AI.

Inter Miami, with Lionel Messi missing a penalty kick (PK), suffered a heavy defeat.

On the 16th (Korean time), Inter Miami lost 1-4 to Nashville in an away match at Geodis Park in Nashville, USA, in the 2026 MLS regular season.

Miami, failing to add any points, remained in second place in the Eastern Conference with 38 points, while the gap with first-place Nashville (43 points) widened to five points.

Messi, who recently attended his father's funeral, started and played the full match today after coming on as a substitute in the third round of the League Cup against Leon (Mexico), which ended in a 2-3 loss on the 13th. Messi's father, Jorge Messi, passed away at the age of 68 in Rosario, Argentina, on the 8th after battling illness.

Miami conceded an early goal to Andy Najar in the 17th minute of the first half. In the 23rd minute, Luis Suárez drew a foul from Heyson Palacios, earning a penalty kick. However, Messi's shot as the kicker was saved by the goalkeeper. Sergio Reguilón then scored with a rebound shot, but the goal was disallowed due to an infringement in the penalty area before the kick.

With this miss, Messi recorded his third consecutive missed penalty in official matches, following the 2026 CONCACAF Nations League group stage match against Austria and the Round of 16 match against Egypt. This marks Messi's first time missing three consecutive penalties since 2014.

Messi attempted a comeback by assisting Telasco Segovia's equalizing goal in stoppage time during the first half, but Miami collapsed after conceding three goals in the second half alone.

Following an early exit from the League Cup and now a heavy defeat in the league, Inter Miami is facing a significant slump in team morale.

Meanwhile, football statistics platform 'SofaScore' gave Messi a rating of 6.2 points after today's match.

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*This content was translated by AI.