Lionel Messi left a large number of A-listers stunned following his Inter Miami debut – including his club’s co-owner, David Beckham.
The football icon finally made his first Major League Soccer appearance on Friday, with the World Cup winner and fellow debutante and former Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets coming on in the second-half.
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It wouldn’t have been a Messi debut without some magic, though, and the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner put on a show for fans who had paid up to £85,000 to see him.
As the game against Cruz Azul edged into added time in the second half at 1-1, Messi stepped up to score the winner with a sublime free-kick in the 94th minute, sending those watching wild as they witnessed one of the sport’s greatest ever stars start his MLS career in style.
Beckham is no stranger to taking beautiful free-kicks.
But Messi’s last-ditch dramatics had him close to tears, with footage showing him celebrate and look overcome with emotion as he took in the reality of Messi playing for his club.
Manchester United and England legend wasn’t the only one loving Messi’s magic, either.
Tennis icon and 23-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams was seen with her jaw dropped and hands raised in the air after watching the set piece.
Williams was sat with TV personality Kim Kardashian – who has been spotted at a number of games last season – also looking amazed by the late drama.
Basketball great LeBron James wasn’t far away from the two stars in the stands.
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The NBA’s all-time leading scorer even shook hands and hug Messi before he made his debut.
He was also spotted taking his phone out to take snaps of Messi throughout the game, too.
Taking to Twitter after the win, James wrote ‘INCREDIBLE!!!!’ alongside a video of Messi’s goal, adding a goat emoji.
