Andres Iniesta and Leo Messi have met again, this time in Tokyo, thanks to NSN. Inter Miami faced Vissel Kobe, the Spanish midfielder’s former club, as part of their international pre-season tour.
Japan’s National Stadium was the venue for this friendly that ended 0-0 after a hard-fought 90 minutes of play. In the penalty shootout Takayuki Yoshida’s team won (4-3) against Tata Martino‘s team.
The match brought together great Barcelona legends such as Leo Messi, Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets and Luis Suarez, who met again with their former teammate who now plays for Emirates Club. Iniesta did not want to miss this unforgettable day and traveled to Japan to be present at an important event for him, in which he was honored at kick-off.
“I just hope you enjoy this great match,” he said just before kick-off.
The Spanish midfielder last coincided in a stadium with the current Inter Miami players in 2018, when he said goodbye to the Blaugrana in his final match at Camp Nou.
Why was Messi able to play in this game?
Although there were doubts about Messi‘s participation in the friendly because of an injury, the Argentine has taken the field in the 14th minute of the second half. The more than 30,000 people present at the National Stadium of Japan were able to watch the player from Rosario play for 30 minutes, although he was not in charge of taking any of the American team’s penalties.
As part of NSN’s mission to improve the quality of sports, they made sure fans were aware of their intentions with this latest friendly.
“We celebrate being able to continue taking soccer to another level, bringing together the best of sports and entertainment,” an NSN statement read.
“The figure of our founder, Andres Iniesta, is central in the history of soccer and we are proud to have been able to organize such an important match for him, both personally and professionally.”