Messi and Suarez played in two away games for Inter Miami, setting a record for MLS jersey sales.

Messi, who had just recovered from injury, made his first appearance after a two-month absence, playing the full 90 minutes in Inter Miami's 3-1 victory over Philadelphia Union on September 15th. In that match, Messi scored a brace and provided an assist for Suarez to seal the win.

Messi has shown he is in excellent form after returning to playing.

However, the fact that this star player and his close friend, both 37 years old, Suarez, are about to play two consecutive away matches within a week is quite rare since they both played for Inter Miami. Physical limitations, injuries, and age are the reasons why Messi and Suarez have rarely played two consecutive matches with a frequency of one match every three days in the past year.

Inter Miami will face Atlanta United at Mercedes-Benz Arena at 6:30 AM on September 19th. Their next match will be at Yankee Stadium against New York City FC at 1:00 AM on September 22nd. Both of these away games are expected to attract massive crowds of 50,000 or more, according to the MLS Moves page on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), due to the appearances of both Messi and Suarez.

Atlanta United are currently ranked 10th in the MLS, but won the first leg against Inter Miami 3-1 at Chase Stadium. Meanwhile, New York City FC are ranked 6th, drawing 1-1 with Inter Miami in the first leg. Both teams are still competing for a playoff spot in the MLS Cup at the end of October.

Messi and Suarez are both participating in an away match, causing a frenzy among fans in Atlanta and New York City, who are scrambling to buy tickets to watch the game.

Meanwhile, Inter Miami has secured a playoff spot. They are aiming for the Supporters' Shield, awarded to the best-performing team in the MLS playoffs, thanks to their impressive results in other matches. Inter Miami has won 19 games, drawn 5, and lost only 4, currently sitting in first place in the MLS standings.

Most of Inter Miami's crucial victories came during Messi's absence (a total of 3 months, from June 1st to August 31st), with 8 wins and only 1 loss. Messi's recent return (a win against Philadelphia Union) was his 9th game.

This winning streak means Inter Miami only needs to win three more of their remaining six MLS games to secure the Supporters' Shield title. This may be the reason why coach Tata Martino decided to include both Messi and Suarez in the two-game tour this week. The hope is to maintain their current winning momentum before returning home to face Charlotte FC (at 6:30 AM on September 29th), thus completing their goal of winning the Supporters' Shield.

Messi still tops the list of best-selling jerseys for the entire 2024 MLS season so far.

In a similar development, the organizers of the MLS (USA) announced that Messi's return has caused a frenzy among fans across the United States, who are once again scrambling to buy the star's jerseys, leading to a surge in sales.

Messi still holds the number one spot as the player with the most jerseys sold so far in the 2024 MLS season, despite his absence for the past three months. Suarez is in second place. The other two Inter Miami stars, Busquets and Jordi Alba, are ranked 11th and 15th respectively, making them the club with the most players whose jerseys have sold in the MLS.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/messi-suarez-thi-dau-2-tran-san-khach-cua-inter-miami-lap-ky-luc-ban-ao-mls-185240918132135012.htm