Lionel Messi is known as one of the greatest football players ever, with a record of many achievements. However, in Inter Miami’s 3-0 defeat to Charlotte FC, he showed that even the best can falter.
In this match, Messi missed a penalty, marking the 32nd time he has done so in his career. He attempted a Panenka shot that failed, and just a minute later, Charlotte scored the first goal of the game.
Prior to this miss, Messi had an impressive streak of almost three years without missing a penalty. His last miss was during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar against Poland, where goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny made a great save.
This recent missed penalty reminded fans that even a player like Messi can have a bad day. Every player makes mistakes, and this error changed the game’s momentum, leading to Miami’s loss.
Lionel Messi of Argentina takes a penalty saved by Wojciech Szczesny of Poland
A missed penalty that ended well
Messi’s last missed penalty against Poland occurred in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup when the score was still 0-0. Argentina received a penalty, but Szczesny made a remarkable save. Despite this, Argentina came back to win 2-0, with goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez.
This penalty moment is remembered for Szczesny’s outstanding performance, which highlighted him in that match. Fortunately, Messi’s miss did not hurt Argentina, as the team secured first place in their group and moved on to the knockout stage.
Despite this single miss, Messi went on to score four penalties during the tournament, against Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands, Croatia, and France in the final. He also converted two more penalties in shootouts, one in the quarterfinals and one in the final, totaling six penalties converted throughout Argentina’s World Cup journey.