Lionel Messi Spotted At Coldplay Concert, Chris Martin Calls Him 'No 1 Sportsperson'
Football icon Lionel Messi was spotted at Coldplay's jumbotron alongside his better half in the North American city. Fans jumped and roared in excitement at the concert as a giant screen unveiled Messi's presence, while Coldplay's lead singer, Chris Martin, welcomed the world cup winner to the concert.
'Welcome to my beautiful brother," said Martin from the stage, looking at Messi, who was smiling as he waved acknowledging the loud reception.
'You and your wife are looking so fine. Thanks for coming today to see our band play. The No.1 sportsperson of all time," Martin said.
Messi went to the Coldplay concert after attending Inter Miami's goalless draw against FC Cincinnati, for which the 38-year-old had been suspended amidst a breach of an All-Stars match regulation.
Speculations had been rife about Messi's absence for the friendly encounter that featured 26 MLS players, including Hirving Lozano, Jordi Alba and Diego Rossi.
Even as MLS authorities were desperate for Messi's appearance because of his incredible fame that would've attracted humongous viewership, he gave the game a skip.
Because Messi took no part in the MLS All-Stars fixture, he was handed a one-match ban by the Major League Soccer authorities.
Messi though was present in the stands on Saturday with Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas calling the punishment 'draconian". He also revealed the legend was 'extremely upset" over the sanction that sidelined him for an important match.
'To fill stadiums and sell tickets, nobody complains. It's strange, one day they say something, and the next day they say something else. We all heard what was said — that it was understandable the number of matches that he had been playing," said Miami's coach Javier Mascherano, reiterating that the ban was imposed despite the club informing MLS officials about the fatigue Messi dealt with amidst a congested schedule.
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