Stu Cowan: Lionel Messi gives Montreal soccer fans a night to remember

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Lionel Messi is much more than just a soccer player.

That’s why there was a big crowd outside the downtown Ritz-Carlton hotel Friday night, waiting for the bus carrying Messi and his Inter Miami FC teammates from the airport, hoping to get a glimpse of the superstar.

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More than three hours before Saturday night’s MLS game between Inter Miami and CF Montréal, another crowd had formed along Sherbrooke St. outside Saputo Stadium, again awaiting the arrival of Messi and his teammates on a bus.

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The bus, with tinted windows, arrived just over 90 minutes before the 7:30 p.m. kickoff with a police escort and drove past the fans and into the parking lot with plenty of security guards around. Fans then scampered to the fence surrounding the parking lot, hoping to get a glimpse of the Argentinian, who is only 5-foot-7 but is a giant in the world of soccer.

The fans could barely see Messi as he got off the bus, but nobody seemed disappointed afterward. There were lots of smiling faces with looks of excitement.

Messi is the biggest worldwide sports star to ever play in Montreal and the fans who were there can say they were part of something very special — even historic — whether they had tickets to the game or not.

After falling behind 2-0 in the first half, Inter Miami came back to win 3-2 without getting a goal from Messi.

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Messi had some good scoring chances, including two free kicks from a few metres outside the box that went over the crossbar. Just about every time the 36-year-old touched the ball he did something special with chants of “Messi! Messi!” He finished with three shots, but only one on target.

Pelé, the biggest worldwide soccer player at the time, played in front of more than 29,000 fans at the old Montreal Autostade in 1971, a few months after helping Brazil win its third World Cup. Pelé scored the only goal as his Santos FC team beat Bologna 1-0 in a friendly.

It was a different world back then, long before social media made it so much smaller. Pelé was the highest-paid athlete in the world in 1971, earning approximately $400,000 a year. Messi earns between US$50 and US$60 million annually from the two-and-a-half year contract he signed with Inter Miami last July and has 502 MILLION followers on his official Instagram account.

There was concern leading up to the game that there might be some empty seats because the single-game ticket prices were more than $400. But it ended up being a sellout with 19,619 in attendance.

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Among the people waiting for the Inter Miami bus to arrive before the game was Matias (who preferred not to give his last name). He was wearing a Messi Argentina sweater and waving the country’s flag. Matias was born in Argentina and moved to Montreal in 2010.

“Messi changed our lives after the World Cup,” Matias said, referring to Argentina’s victory in 2022. “So every day we are happy because of Messi. That’s how I feel. The Argentina situation is not good. It’s only Messi who gives us good news. I also love Messi’s personality because he’s humble. He’s a good guy.”

Matias said he has been going to CF Montréal games about once a month since 2014. But, this year, he decided to buy a season ticket to make sure he could see Messi.

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George Sayegh and his friend Robert Peter, who have both coached soccer in Laval, were among the fans who arrived early hoping they might get lucky and have Messi sign one of the sweaters they brought. Sayegh had a Messi sweater from his days with FC Barcelona, while Peter has an FC Barcelona sweater and an Argentina sweater.

“I grew up watching Messi and I’m really excited to see him,” Sayegh said. “I want to get his signature. I even bought new Sharpies to make sure my Sharpie works.”

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Messi’s immense fame comes with a price. He is basically a prisoner in his hotel room when Inter Miami goes on the road. While most of his teammates would have been able to walk around Montreal without being noticed, Messi probably can’t go anywhere in the world without being recognized. As a result, the security around him is tight.

Sayegh and Peter wouldn’t have been lucky enough to get an autograph, but they did get their tickets free from a friend.

Jared House and his 12-year-old son Alexander travelled all the way from Newfoundland to see Messi. Alexander was wearing the full Inter Miami pink uniform with Messi and No. 10 on the back that he got for Christmas last year.

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“He’s been talking about Messi for the last couple of years and he’s big into soccer,” House said about his son.

When asked if he paid more than $400 for the tickets, House said: “Oh, yeah. Something like that. But I saw this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. This might be our last chance to watch him. Who knows how much longer he’s going to play?”

This was a night fans who were at Saputo Stadium will never forget.

scowan@postmedia.com

twitter.com/StuCowan1

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