ATLANTA: Lionel Messi connected on a free kick in the 54th minute to propel Inter Miami to a 2-1 victory over FC Porto in a Group A match of the FIFA Club World Cup on Thursday afternoon.
After Porto struck first on Samu Aghehowa鈥檚 penalty kick in the eighth minute, Marcelo Weigandt assisted on Telasco Segovia鈥檚 game-tying goal in the 47th.
Miami found its second goal in the first 10 minutes of the second half against Porto goalkeeper Claudio Ramos as Messi scored on the 68th free-kick goal of his illustrious career.
Each team netted their first goals of the tournament after Miami tied Al Ahly 0-0 on Saturday and Porto suffered the same result against Palmeiras on Sunday.
After VAR review confirmation, it was determined that Miami鈥檚 Noah Allen committed a tripping penalty in the box against Joao Mario, leading to Aghehowa鈥檚 penalty goal that was deflected by goalkeeper Oscar Ustari and in for the game鈥檚 first goal in the eighth minute.
Aghehowa, 21, had 19 goals in 30 Primeira Liga matches for the Portuguese side this past season.
Miami knotted the score at one less than 90 seconds into the second half, as Weigandt鈥檚 cross into the center of the box was finished by Segovia, who fired in the equalizing goal past a sprawling Ramos.
Miami then continued its great start to the second half, as Porto鈥檚 Rodrigo Mora鈥檚 foul led to Messi鈥檚 successful free kick 鈥� perfectly placed in the top right corner in the 54th minute.