Inter Miami crushes New England (4-1) with three assists from Messi
Mascherano's men were back to smiling after their week-long slump. After the match, Sergio Busquets was honored along with his family.
Inter Miami celebrates their second goal
Inter Miami beat New England Revolution 4-1 on Saturday with three assists from Argentine star Lionel Messi. With that result on the twenty-sixth MLS matchday, the Herons climbed to third place in the Eastern Conference.
The Revs generated the first chance of the match through Brandon Bye, who hit the crossbar after a measured cross from Carles Gil from the left flank, according to AFP. Little could be done by Argentine Rocco Ríos Novo, who started the match in a surprise move in place of the experienced Óscar Ustari.
Miami's opening attack came after a brilliant combination on the edge of the box between Messi and Luis Suarez, however, the Argentine captain's shot ended up in the hands of Matt Turner. In the 32nd minute, Messi picked up the ball in midfield and turned to find Tadeo Allende unmarked, who fired a low shot across goal to make it 1-0.
The first half was played under a constant rain that raised the pace of the game. In the second half, New England managed to close the gap with a sublime shot from outside the box by Dor Turgeman.
The response came quickly from Allende and Alba, each completing a brace in the 60th and 63rd minutes. Messi set up Alba with a pass inside the box and played a through ball to Allende, leaving him just two assists short of his personal best of five, set on May 4, 2024.
Javier Mascherano's side bounced back from a midweek loss to Chicago Fire. Inter Miami has 59 points and is in third place in the Eastern Conference and one game behind Cincinnati, which is in second place.
Farewell, Supporters Shield
Philadelphia Union defeated New York City FC with a single goal by Mikael Uhre and secured the first place in the Eastern Conference.
Miami could not revalidate the title achieved under Gerardo Martino in a 2024 season in which they reached 74 points.
Tribute to Busquets
At the end of the match against New England Revolution, Inter Miami paid tribute to Spanish midfielder Sergio Busquets, who announced late last month his retirement from soccer at the end of the season.
His teammates paraded him down the aisle with his wife and children until he met with Inter Miami's majority shareholder, Jorge Más. "I like to finish well in places, to end good stories by my own choice. I think that's how it's been," Busquets said.
A video was projected on the stadium screens in which his great teammates sent messages of admiration, including Carles Puyol, Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Javier Mascherano and Lionel Messi, among others.
On his future, Busquets aims to spend some time with his family and then become a coach. "I think in the future, yes [I would like to be a coach], but for now I’d rather take a sabbatical... You want to enjoy time with your family, time for me, for them, seeing my children, being with them, traveling more, watching football from a different perspective. And then, in the future, we'll see."
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