FIFA CWC: Lionel Messi cruelly denied revenge as PSG dominate Inter Miami 4-0

Lionel Messi may have dreamt of rewriting an unfinished chapter against his former club, but Paris Saint-Germain ensured there would be no fairy-tale ending. On a humid June 29 night at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Messi’s Inter Miami were dismantled 4-0 by the reigning European champions in the FIFA Club World Cup Round of 16 — a ruthless reminder of the gap between Major League Soccer and top-tier European football.

For Messi, it was more than just a knockout game. It was a return to face a club that once promised so much but gave so little — and in turn, a chance to put that chapter to rest. But PSG, led by Luis Enrique, arrived in Atlanta not with sentiment, but with purpose. From the very first whistle, the gulf in quality was visible in every blade of grass. And it took just six minutes for PSG to make their presence felt.

Joao Neves, rising unmarked inside the box, headed in the opener after a wonderfully curled free-kick from Vitinha — the Portuguese midfielder dictating rhythm and flow like a metronome in PSG’s midfield. It was a goal born from precision and patience, two qualities Inter Miami lacked for most of the night.

Despite fielding a team of legends — Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba — Inter Miami were barely able to stitch together any cohesive attacking threat. Their defensive strategy relied heavily on bodies behind the ball, with nearly every pink shirt camped inside their own half. But the pressure was unrelenting.

Just before halftime, PSG found their second — again through Neves — this time after Fabian Ruiz danced past the Miami line and selflessly squared it for the Portuguese midfielder to tap into an empty net. The third came moments later as Thomas Avils turned in an own goal under pressure from a Bradley Barcola cross. And by the time Achraf Hakimi smashed home the fourth, the contest had transformed into a training exercise for the Parisians.

Where was Messi in all this? Isolated. Drifting. Waiting. A lone figure up front, too often without service, and rarely in the rhythm of play. Suarez, now 36, looked fatigued trying to cover ground. Busquets appeared a step off the pace. Alba's usual bursts down the flank were absent. And from the dugout, Javier Mascherano — the Inter Miami coach — looked like a man still learning, perhaps even admiring the blueprint across the touchline from his former coach.

To Inter Miami’s credit, they held PSG at bay in the second half, but only because the French side seemingly stepped off the gas. The urgency faded, replaced by a series of practice drills in possession. Even then, Messi carved out rare moments — including one trademark free-kick attempt from 30 yards out in the dying minutes. It hit the wall.

And with that, the curtain closed on Messi’s Club World Cup campaign. No goals, no drama, just a humbling defeat that left more questions than answers. For Inter Miami, the night served as a reality check — that the road from American ambition to European calibre is long and steep. And for Messi, perhaps a quiet lesson: some pasts aren’t meant to be rewritten.