 "Lionel Messi was mobbed by fans on the pitch during Inter Miami’s friendly against Independiente del Valle in Puerto Rico. Image: Reuters")
Lionel Messi was knocked down to the ground not by a defender but a security official in dramatic circumstances during the dying minutes of the friendly match between Inter Miami and Independiente del Valle in Puerto Rico on Thursday. Thankfully, the fall was far from dangerous, and the world’s most popular footballer escaped unscathed from the accident.
The incident took place in the 89th minute of the rescheduled match in which Messi scored a goal from the spot, and Inter Miami won 2-1. Just before the final whistle, a bunch of fans ran onto the pitch. Two of them managed to get close to Messi in the centre of the field.
Messi knocked down by a fan
But they were not able to take a selfie. One of the fans held Messi from behind, who had no idea that a supporter was there. Just as the fan hugged Messi from the back, a security official tried to pull him away. In the process, Messi was also brought down to the ground before he found his composure and stood back up.
The fan’s reaction only showed the craze of Messi in Puerto Rico. The legendary footballer received loud ovations after entering the match post-halftime. The stadium also reverberated with loud cheers every time he touched the ball.
The fans certainly got their money’s worth, and it was to respect this fandom that the match was rescheduled. It was initially to take place on 13 February, but was pushed to 26 February due to a hamstring injury to Messi.
It’s rare for a friendly to be postponed like this, but Miami wanted to be extra conscious after Messi missing a match in Hong Kong had led to a diplomatic crisis .
“Hi everyone, I wanted to send this message to the people of Puerto Rico and all the people that will be going to the training session and game,” Messi had said in a video while announcing the postponement.
“To be honest, during the last game in Ecuador I concluded with a muscle strain, which is why I left the field early. So, together with the people of the organization and Inter Miami it was decided to suspend this game. We hope it can be reprogrammed, and we can see each other. Visit you soon. Sending a hug to you all and thank you for all the love that you always give. I hope we can do it in the future, all the best.”