Zlatan Ibrahimovic Stands Up for Lionel Messi After PSG Thrashing In FIFA Club World Cup: 'He Didn’t lose, Inter Miami Did'

Inter Miami were knocked out of the FIFA Club World Cup after a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Lionel Messi failed to get his side past his former team as PSG dominated the match from the very first moment.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic Defends Lionel Messi After PSG Thrashing

Optimism was pretty high, but Luis Enrique's side showed they only meant business in the tournament. The reigning Champions League winners didn't show any mercy to the MLS side and were 4-0 up in the first half only. Joao neves scored a couple while another strike from Achraf Hakimi, followed by an Inter Miami own goal, piled more misery on Lionel Messi's side.

Despite the harrowing defeat, Zlatan Ibrahimovic came forward to defend Messi, claiming the other Inter Miami players failed to show up on the pitch and didn't help Messi enough. As quoted by FootMercato, he said, "Leo Messi didn’t lose, Inter Miami did! Messi is playing with statues, not teammates. He’s surrounded by players who run as if they’re carrying bags of cement!

"If he were in a real team, in any big team, you’d see the real lion. Messi plays only because he loves the game, because he can still do what 99% of players cannot! There are no coaches, no stars, not even players who understand how to move without the ball! This is not the Messi I know, if you put him in a real team, he’ll still set the stadium on fire!”

Also Read: Lionel Messi's Inter Miami Crash Out of FIFA Club World Cup 2025 as PSG Thrash MLS Side 4-0

Lionel Messi Remains The Heartbeat Of Inter Miami

Messi looked to threaten the PSG defence on a number of occasions, but his involvement didn't bear any fruit. Inter Miami advanced to the knockouts courtesy of a surprising 2-12 win over FC Porto and remained the only team to secure a place in the playoffs. Lionel Messi has maintained his perfect record of qualifying to the next round from every group stage he has participated in with his clubs or Argentina so far. Inter bMiami will now face Montreal in a MLS match on July 6.

Also Read: Netizens Troll Lionel Messi Following Inter Miami's Exit From Club World Cup After 4-0 Defeat To PSG: 'His Magic Only Worked At Barcelona'