Inter Miami suffered a late 2-1 defeat to Monterrey in their Leagues Cup clash on Saturday, with captain Lionel Messi missing the encounter following the death of his father, Jorge Messi.
The match began with a tribute to Jorge, who died aged 68 in Argentina.
Players and officials observed a minute’s silence before kick-off as Messi travelled to Argentina to be with his family.
Inter Miami also expressed their support for their captain, saying, “Our hearts are with our captain, Leo, and the entire Messi family.”
Despite Messi’s absence, Miami took control of the game and went into the interval ahead after Argentine midfielder Rodrigo De Paul struck in the 32nd minute.
De Paul later paid tribute to Messi by revealing a No. 10 shirt underneath his No. 7 jersey after scoring.
However, the hosts were unable to protect their advantage after the break.
Monterrey levelled just two minutes into the second half when Belgian forward Hugo Cuypers found the net.
The Mexican side completed the comeback deep into stoppage time, with Uruguay international Diego Rossi scoring in the 90th minute to hand Monterrey all three points.
Miami had opened their group campaign with a 4-2 victory over Atletico San Luis and will look to bounce back when they face Leon on Wednesday.
The defeat came on an emotional night for the MLS champions, who were without their influential captain as they dealt with the loss of his father.
