CLEVELAND — What’s the the big deal about Lionel Messi?

The answer to that is easy and all you had to do was travel to downtown Cleveland to watch arguably the greatest player in soccer take the pitch with Inter Miami and play the Columbus Crew at Huntington Bank Field on April 19.

Miami is 1,250 miles away from Cleveland and Columbus is 141 miles, yet 60,614 people jammed the stadium for the game and there were probably as many Messi jerseys in the stands as there were Crew kits.

“He’s the greatest player to play the sport,” teammate Benjamin Cremaschi said. “That’s why he attracts so many people to come watch him. He’s a great player. I don’t know how else to describe it. He moves worlds. We’re so happy to have him on our side.”

What Lionel Messi means to MLS and soccer is immeasurable

Cremaschi was the lone goal scorer in the 1-0 MLS game.

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It kept Inter Miami (5-0-3) as the only undefeated team left in the league. His goal came 30 minutes in on a cross from Marcelo Weigandt and handed the Crew (5-1-3) their first loss and pushed the two into a tie for second behind Charlotte the Eastern Conference.

Although Messi didn’t figure in the scoring, his presence alone was enough to keep Columbus honest throughout the entire match.

“You know what he’s capable of as a player,” Columbus midfielder and Olmsted Falls native Sean Zawadzki said. “It’s just constant communication with our team to stay organized if and when he has the ball and sorting things out. Obviously, he’s a really good player and he has his moments, so it’s limiting those moments as much as you can.”

Lionel Messi moments mean everything for fans far and wide

Messi took four shots, with only one landing on frame. He took five corner kicks, yet every time he so much as breathed on the ball, the crowd rose to its collective in the 90 minutes he played.

That’s what you get with the 56-time champion who has won a World Cup, two Copa Américas, four UEFA Champions Leagues and 12 Big Five league titles.

“He’s going to have his moments,” Crew keeper Patrick Schulte said. “He’s able to turn the game on its head at any moment. For me, it’s doing my job and making sure nothing goes into the back of the net.”

Those moments aren’t lost on anyone in the crowd either.

Inter Miami and the Chicago Fire played to a scoreless tie a week ago and 62,358 fans invaded Soldier Field to watch that one.

We’ll do the math for you. That’s 122,972 fans who saw Messi not score a goal.

All still went home with great memories.

“We enjoy having him as a teammate,” Weigandt said. “He’s an amazing player and person. We just enjoy the day-to-day. We know what he means for fans and people. I enjoy having him as a teammate.”

Contact Brad Bournival at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter at @bbournival