Inter Miami once again fell off the wagon with a disappointing result in the MLS. Just hours ago, the Lionel Messi-less Herons endured their first defeat of the season against Montreal in a five-goal thriller. While fingers are being pointed at Miami, Tata Martino has candidly blamed today’s match refereeing by likening it to last night’s Manchester City vs Liverpool clash as he questions the ‘spirit of the league.’

In the post-match press conference, the former River Plate manager didn’t spare any of his true thoughts regarding the officials. Martino complained about MLS refereeing and compared it to that of the Premier League. He said, “Whoever watched the Liverpool and Manchester City match and saw the shape and pace of the match, the referee of that match gave eight minutes, the same amount they gave today when there was a team that did not want to play.” The 61-year-old then further took a dig at the MLS officials. “The spirit of the league that they told me about in an hour-long talk, I didn’t see today,” added the Argentinian tactician.

Notably, both Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp weren’t happy as well with refereeing last night. Nevertheless, coming back, Martino also believes that Miami’s 2-3 defeat came through poor officiating. After trailing with a goal in the first half, Leonardo Campana came to the rescue with his 71st-minute equalizer. However, Montreal took no time in restoring their lead, as Jordi Alba’s brilliant volley to double Miami’s lead went in vain. Additionally, Messi’s absence was also one of the reasons for the Herons’ defeat. Speaking of which, why didn’t La Pulga make an appearance? 

The reason why Lionel Messi wasn’t present to save Inter Miami 

According to journalist Gaston Edul, Lionel Messi was absent from the recent match as the management wanted to prioritize his safe return for the Leg 2 CONCACAF encounter against Nashville. The 36-year-old received a harsh tackle in the previous match while attempting to apply pressure on opposition player Lukas MacNaughton. During an attempt to clear the ball, the center-back’s studs made contact with Messi’s ankle, causing it to twist.

“Forfeit Any Future Games Messi Is Injured For” – Inter Miami Suffers First Season Defeat Without Lionel Messi; Fans React

Yet, the skipper managed to continue the match, with Tata Martino also debunking concerns regarding his injury. Either way, it was a pragmatic step that Miami had to take. Already, Leg 1 ended in a close 2-2 draw. Hence, the Florida side didn’t want to mess up their CONCACAF chances by losing their key player. Thursday’s clash will feature Messi and let’s hope that Martino doesn’t face the refereeing issues that he faced in today’s match.

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