Lionel Messi finally put an age -old argument in bed after playing in circumstances that are colder than a Tuesday evening in Stoke.
The eight times Ballon d'Or winner is seen by many as the biggest football player of all time.
However, one of the most important arguments against his estate is his lack of playing time in colder weather because his career is mainly played in Sunny Spain or Argentina.
This is usually related to Stoke, where games are usually haunted by windy, wet and cold weather in the evening, hence the expression: “Can they do it on a cold, rainy night in Stoke?”
But in the first competitive match of Inter Miami of 2025 in the first round of the Concacaf Champions Cup, Lionel Messi was forced to exchange the pristine weather of Florida for the strong conditions in Kansas City.
It was sensational that the 37-year-old did not want to play in the “blistered cold” where the game was played.
The temperatures fell as low as -17 degrees Celsius (1.4 Fahrenheit) during the game.
Anyway, Messi was mentioned in the starting XI by Inter Miami boss Javier Mascherano and was seen in a rare face for the occasion.
After a aimless first half, the Argentinian announced its impact if he scored a stunning race winner ten minutes in half.
A pass was peeled forward by Sergio Busquets, where Messi pulled the ball on his chest and then dripped to the right of a bamboozed defender with a left-foot touch to open some space.
He then bent a shot about the goal from a tight corner and found the bottom corner to give Inter a 1-0 advantage for the home leg in Chase Stadium next week.
Fans were stunned about the goal, but also believed that it finally put one of the arguments against him to rest.
A fan said on social media: “The argument” Messi could do it on a cold Tuesday evening vs stoke “is now being brought to bed, the goat can do it easily.”
A second said, “People did not say in any way that he couldn't do it on a cold rainy night in Stoke.”
A third added: “Goat for a reason.”
His boss Mascherano was also impressed and called his effort “fantastic” before he added: “(I am) very proud because I think it is impossible to play in these circumstances.
“Is not human, you know. So I am very proud because they have given me 100 percent …
“Perhaps for the people who know him (Messi) it is normal because he has done 1000 times goals as goals.
“But we are very lucky that we have it here.”
Inter Miami's first Major League football match of the season is against New York City FC at home this weekend.
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