A club-record crowd of 62,358 packed into Soldier Field for the visit of Lionel Messi and his Inter team to witness a gutsy display from the home side.

Messi tucked the 84th minute spot kick into the corner to complete the comeback for Miami and earn them a place in the last four.

Too often Messi, who played the full game, was trying to create by himself while crowded out by Toronto defenders but did he test Johnson with a low shot in the 77th minute after working some space for himself.

A 57th-minute strike from Los Angeles-born El Salvador international Nathan Ordaz handed LAFC a precious advantage heading into next Wednesday's return leg in Florida.

Messi had missed Argentina's World Cup qualifiers in South America during the recent international window after picking up an adductor strain in Miami's most recent Major League Soccer game, a 2-1 win at Atlanta on March 16.

Argentina great Lionel Messi and his family watched tennis legend Novak Djokovic dominate Grigor Dimitrov in the Miami Open semifinal yesterday.

According to Novak Djokovic, he is playing his best tennis in a “long time”, and the Serb got rated as 8 out of 10 by one of the sons of Lionel Messi -- another athlete who has been nearly perfect his entire career.

The 37-year-old football legend took to Instagram to share his frustration and support for his teammates.

Messi scored a stunning goal in Inter Miami's 2-1 win at Atlanta United in Major League Soccer (MLS) on Sunday but felt a muscle discomfort, local media reported.

Veteran Haiti international Fafa Picault headed in the winning goal in the 89th minute to give Miami a precious victory that extended their unbeaten start to the season.

It marked the third straight game that Messi failed to feature for Miami after he did not travel to Houston for last week's 4-1 win in MLS before watching the 2-0 victory over Jamaica's Cavalier in the CONCACAF Champions Cup first-leg game on Thursday.

Luis Suarez scored a goal and assisted on three others to lead Inter Miami to a dominant 4-1 victory over the host Houston Dynamo on Sunday night.

Messi scored in the 1-0 first-leg win in icy Kansas City last week and it took him only 19 minutes to find the target at a much warmer Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale in the return.

The Argentine World Cup winner was caught on camera in a confrontation with NYCFC assistant coach Mehdi Ballouchy after the final whistle.

Messi provided the assists for both Miami's goals including the leveler which came in the 10th minute of stoppage time.

Messi struck in the 56th minute at Children's Mercy Park, showing superb individual skill before rifling a low angled shot past Sporting goalkeeper John Pulskamp.

The Argentinian midfielder, who plays for FC Porto, will get the chance to line up against national icon Lionel Messi at the FIFA Club World Cup 2025™, when the Portuguese giants take on Inter Miami at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium on 23 June. It’s a challenge he’s eager to tackl

Although Belgian striker Robert Lewandowski scored the decisive goal in the 61st minute, it was Yamal who stole the spotlight at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium.

For now, the Argentine is focused on Inter Miami’s upcoming season and the FIFA Club World Cup in 2026.

The award is given to individuals who have made "exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values or security of the United States, world peace or other significant societal, public or private endeavors," according to the White House.