Lionel Messi scores on his Inter Miami debut

Lionel Messi has scored on his debut for Inter Miami in the final seconds of stoppage time as his team beat Cruz Azul 2-1.

On as a 54th minute substitute in the Leagues Cup game on Friday, Messi was given the chance for the perfect debut when he won a free-kick on the edge of the box and curled the game-winner into the top corner.

Messi's left foot sent the ball over a wall of four Cruz Azul defenders and into the upper left corner of the net, unquestionably the greatest moment in Inter Miami's brief history.

The Argentine superstar was introduced along with former Barcelona team-mate Sergio Busquets with Miami leading the game at their DRV PNK Stadium 1-0.

He hugged the player he was replacing, midfielder Benjamin Cremaschi, then trotted onto the field as the estimated crowd of 21,000 all seemed to be standing, almost all of them with phones out to chronicle the moment.

It took Inter Miami four years of planning and two years of actual pursuing to bring Messi to the club.

World Cup winner and seven-times Ballon d’Or winner Messi became the biggest name signing in MLS's history when he joined Miami after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain came to an end in June.

LeBron James, Kim Kardashian and Serena Williams were among the stars in the sell-out crowd, with many fans decked out in replica pink Miami shirts with Messi's name and number 10 on the back.

NBA star James now stars for the Los Angeles Lakers, but he enjoyed success with the Miami Heat winning two NBA championships with the club and he embraced Messi before the game.

Coach Martino on Messi

Miami coach Gerardo Martino, who coached Messi with Barcelona and with the Argentine national team, had suggested that the star may not yet be ready to play a full game after only returning to training this week after his family vacation.

For fans disappointed not to see Messi from the start, Martino wasn't even able to offer an assurance that the star would come into the game.

"We'll see, it depends a bit on how the match is, the circumstances, we've talked about it, we've trained, we'll look for the best form for them," he said shortly before the contest.

It was clear that not only the fans had been planning on seeing Messi from the start however, as fireworks exploded above the grandstands when the referee blew the whistle to start the encounter.

Miami co-owner David Beckham had urged fans to have patience with Messi and Busquets while they settled in to their new home and club.

"Leo's still going to need, no matter how good he is, no matter what his stature is, he and Sergio are going to need time to adapt no matter," said the Englishman.

Miami are currently in bottom place in MLS, which is now taking a one month break while the teams take part in the Leagues Cup tournament, which features all the top flight clubs from MLS and Mexico’s Liga MX.