All Whites defender Michael Boxall takes on Lionel Messi, and wins

Sunday, 11 May 2025

Michael Boxall went toe-to-toe with football icon Lionel Messi on Sunday (NZT) – and won.

The All Whites defender captained his Major League Soccer club Minnesota United to an emphatic 4-1 victory over Messi’s Inter Miami.

Boxall has rubbed shoulders with plenty of other famous footballers during his time in the United States, including former Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

But they don’t come much bigger than Messi, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players to ever grace the football pitch.

It’s believed Boxall is only the second New Zealand footballer after Tauranga-born United States international Tyler Boyd to play against the Argentine superstar.

Boxall set up Minnesota’s second goal via a long throw-in in first-half stoppage-time.

Messi scored immediately after the break to cut the hosts’ lead to one.

But Miami’s marquee man was kept quiet by Boxall and the rest of the Minnesota defenders for the remainder of the match.

Minnesota scored twice in the space of two second-half minutes to kill off the contest.

After the match, Messi gave his playing shirts to Minnesota’s two Argentine players, Nicolás Romero and Joaquín Pereyra.

Boxall may have missed out on a collector’s item but he will always be able to tell the story about the day he played Messi – and won.

The win lifted Minnesota up to second in the Western Conference standings.