Messi and Inter Miami bounce back with goals after Club World Cup

(AFP) After their Club World Cup exit, Inter Miami beat CF Montreal 4-1 on Saturday in their return to MLS, with two stunning goals from Lionel Messi.

At 38, the Argentine star put on another impressive performance in the domestic league, helping turn the page on last weekend’s tough 4-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the Club World Cup round of 16.

Inter, having reached its goal of advancing past the first round of the intercontinental tournament, is now focused on rebounding in MLS. The team currently sits sixth in the Eastern Conference with 32 points from 17 matches, with four games remaining in the regular season.

“It’s a great night. We earned three much-needed points to refocus on MLS,” said Javier Mascherano, technical director of Las Garzas.

“El Jefecito” said, “It’s never easy to jump back into competition after the Club World Cup, but the players did it perfectly.”

Allergic to rotations, Messi played the entire match and was the main figure from the start, though he made an unusual mistake that led to the home team’s first goal.

After receiving the ball in his own half, the Argentine star accidentally set up Germany’s Prince Owusu, who scored past goalkeeper Oscar Ustari in the 2nd minute.

Messi and his teammates Luis Suarez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets—who also played the full 90 minutes—stayed composed as Inter quickly turned the score around with two nearly back-to-back goals.

In the 33rd minute, Argentina’s Tadeo Allende caught goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois off guard with a powerful shot from the edge of the box. Then, in the 40th minute, Messi scored his first brilliant goal by cutting in from the right, beating Colombian defender Fernando Álvarez, and placing the ball inside the far post.

Houston Dynamo's comeback

Argentine Ezequiel Ponce scored twice in the final minutes to give Houston Dynamo a thrilling 4-3 victory over San Diego. The California team remains atop the Western Conference with 39 points.

In another match, the Portland Timbers secured a 2-1 victory over the New England Revolution thanks to a goal from Portuguese forward David Da Costa. Led by former English footballer Phil Neville, the Timbers climbed to fourth place with 33 points.

Finally, San Jose Earthquakes and New York Red Bulls played to a 1-1 tie, with Sweden’s Emil Forsberg scoring for the Red Bulls.