The first wrinkle in Lionel Messi's fairytale start to life at Inter Miami came in the form of a goalless stalemate against Nashville SC on Wednesday night.
"It is true that we were a bit unaccustomed to this," Inter Miami manager Tata Martino reflected after the team's nine-match winning streak came to an abrupt end. "The titles, the final, with a league game won the other day in New York, but we must move forward. There are still many things left to say."
Messi is not the most loquacious character, especially in public - Miami's new captain had to be acquitted after flouting Major League Soccer's post-match media requirements. Nevertheless, here's when he will next have the opportunity to let his feet do the talking.
When do Inter Miami and Lionel Messi play next?
Messi's first ten appearances for Inter Miami were condensed into just 39 days. August 2023 was the busiest month of Messi's career since leaving Barcelona two years ago but September is set to be just as jam-packed.
Inter Miami return to league action with an away match against Los Angeles FC that kicks off on Sunday 3 September at 19:00 local time (22:00 EST and 03:00 BST).
Reigning MLS Cup champions LAFC are second in the Western Conference and have lost just three of their last 26 league games in front of their own fans. LAFC's manager Steve Cherundolo was part of a backline for the US men's national team that prevented an Argentina side including Messi (and Sergio Aguero) from scoring during an international friendly in 2008. Now he has to instruct his players how to replicate that feat on Sunday night.
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Is Lionel Messi going to miss any Inter Miami matches?
At least three swells of chants demanding: "We want Messi!" bounced around the Red Bull Arena within the first ten minutes when the star man started on the bench against New York Red Bulls on Monday.
Messi-hungry MLS fans will be starved of their new idol during the imminent September international break. Messi has retired from international duty on two previous occasions but pledged to carry on representing Argentina after the triumphant World Cup final in Qatar. "I enjoy being in the national team and want to continue by experiencing a few more games as a world champion," he explained.
Martino warned that Messi will miss "at least three" matches for Inter Miami this calendar year - the club are only guaranteed ten more league games as they lie outside the play-off positions.
Argentina host Ecuador in South American qualifying for the 2026 World Cup on 7 September before making the arduous trip into the clouds to face Bolivia on 12 September. Inter Miami host Sporting KC on 9 September between those fixtures but will certainly be without Messi that Saturday.
Bolivia's Estadio Hernando Siles is a dizzying 3,637 metres (11,932 feet) above sea level and a ten-hour flight away from Atlanta, the venue of Inter Miami's MLS fixture on 16 September. It remains to be seen whether Martino rushes Messi back from high altitude, especially with the all-important final of the US Open Cup on the horizon.
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This article was originally published on 90min as Lionel Messi and Inter Miami's next game after MLS draw against Nashville.
