Lionel Messi entertained the Miami crowd, who vibrated to the rhythm of the national team

And the alegríadera was formed by the hand of Leone Messi. The best in the world was man in front of the show that Argentina national team He took off in the first friendly of the US tour. He beats Honduras 3-0 with a brace from the captain who, despite the heat, the persecution of the opponent who gave him a firm point and the sometimes rough game, never lowered the intensity. Thus, he made thousands of Argentines have fun and jump from their seats. Qatar is approaching, the unbeaten run extends to 34 games and Leo exhibits a level that keeps the illusion high. In case there is any doubt, Miami confirmed it to me …

He will do it. She always does. And he will do it again. They all know them. But in the same way, no one can stop it. Nor the suffocation of a personal brand. Messi manages to put those recorded passes with his seal behind the back of the rival right back or in the space between that header and the first defender over and over again. The ball goes there, in the free hole, because it does what Leo wants. And there, in the free space, a friend seems to surprise.

It was the formula that the 10 Argentines used to violate Honduras in the sweltering night of a Hard Rock Stadium with more than 70,000 people, mostly Albiceleste fans. First it was Alejandro Gómez who took advantage of La Pulga’s exact left. El Papu throws the diagonal into the box from the left and assists Lautaro Martínez for the 1-0 that would have come by decantation. There are 21 goals for El Toro in 39 appearances. Demolition Man.

Scaloni’s team, of course, dominated from start to finish over a much lesser rival who is going through a transition phase after failing to qualify for the World Cup. The blue and white DT played a bit of mystery in the previous one. He tried a five-back scheme in the final practice, but set up the classic backcountry four for the match. He gave Gerónimo Rulli a chance on goal. He opted for Germán Pezzella and Lisandro Martínez (with only strong training) as a pair of defenders. And he wanted to see Gómez from the start leaning on the left-handed end of the attack.

There, Papu was pure spark. He forced the whole time and had a shot from the crossbar in the first risk of the match. But the lights are always by Lionel Messi. And in Miami, Rosario, who is having a perfect start to the season at Paris Saint-Germain, shone again. Initially positioned on the right, Messi was a danger whenever he made contact with the ball. He didn’t mind the man-to-man marking that Honduras’ Argentine coach Diego Vázquez had arranged for him. It was Héctor Castellanos who clung to the captain and followed him under the bed. He didn’t even run away when the referee stopped play to cool off.

With him in tow and all the rest, the 10 played loose. Of course, sometimes they made him feel the penalty with some strong infractions, like the bump that Deybi Flores gave him with his shoulder on his face, which left him knocked out and produced the reaction of all his teammates (Rodrigo de Paul, the first to defend him). Over and over, he generated leaked passages that were impossible to decipher.

From left to center he gave one of those clean balls to Giovani Lo Celso, another who showed quality and distribution on the pitch. Marcelo Santos, already booked for several infractions, grabbed him by the shirt and the judge charged him with a penalty, even though he was wrong not to show the second yellow card to Honduras. Messi, with a cross pass to the net, puts the second of the evening.

There would have been more. Because the king of this game never gets tired. As Scaloni said, he always wants to play. That’s why he kept running past the fact that the game was doomed. That’s why he kept searching voraciously. That’s why he gave people more magical touches, as per definition above the goalkeeper in the third. That was his 88th goal for his country.

mixed. For Messi there are no friendlies; the World Cup has just arrived and that is why he leaves everything in this final preparation. He dances and makes dance to the rhythm of his total kick. Miami confirmed it.

* Special correspondent in Miami