WeeklySA_AdminReunion: Lionel Messi faces former team in last 16 of Fifa Club World Cup
By Sports Reporter
Paris Saint-Germain will face Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami in the roundn16 of the Club World Cup on Sunday.
It’s a blockbuster clash with both teams possessing a star-studded forward line, the encounter promises to be a cracker.
Notably, Inter Miami’s talisman Lionel Messi will face his former club for the first time.
Messi will also reunite with a familiar face – Luis Enrique. The two shared a successful spell at Barcelona, most famously the 6-1 comeback against PSG in 2017, when the Catalans overturned a 4-0 first leg deficit to reach the quarterfinals That match featured Inter Miami players, Messi, Luiz Suarez, and Sergio Busquets, while Joldi Alba was on the bench.
With a potential quarter final showdown with either Flamengo or Bayern Munich on the line, emotions will be set aside as former colleagues reunite in a high-stskes clash in Atlanta.
Fresh off a historic treble, Ligue 1, Coupe de France, and the UEFA champions leagie, PSG arrive with momentum. The French giants will look to add Club World Cup to their silverware. Luis Enrique’s men topped Group B with six points. Les Pariseans have been dominant in their approach, averaging 73 percent possession across the group stage, with goals coming from six different players.
Defensively, PSG conceded just one goal in their last five matches. They have displayed defensive solidity alongside their attacking prowess, and as a result, they will enter the knockouts as one of the tournament’s favorites.
Inter Miami are set for one of the most monumental fixtures in their five year history.
Their journey to the last 16 has been a rollercoaster ride. After drawing with Al Ahly, they secured a memorable win over Porto before a late collapse against Palmeiras saw them settle for.second place in Group A.
Inter Miami remains unbeaten in six games across all competition, scoringn16 goals in that span. Led by Messi and Suarez in attack, Inter Miami possesses the creativity and experience to cause problems, but facing PSG will be their toughest challenge yet on the global scale. For Javier Mascherano’s side, this encounter represents how far they’ve come.
Expect PSG to control proceedings with their pace and possession, while Miami will be looking for moments for magic from Messi and Suarez to stay in the contest. However, with Miami’s suspect defense, PSG’s attacking thread should see them edge the MLS side.
A tight affair will be on the cards here, with PSG’s quality expected to prevail.
