Football General Manager
Lionel Messi made more history Saturday evening as Inter Miami defeated Nashville SC 2-1 at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Argentine, scorer of both goals for the Herons on the evening, made it five-straight matches with a brace – becoming the first player in MLS history to achieve the feat, extending his already-standing record of four games with multiple goal contributions.
A crucial three points for the South Beach club, it was a contentious showing from the away side, but in the end, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner’s brilliance proved to be the difference at the end of the day.
Messi opened the scoring in the 17th minute of the match, driving home a low-driven free kick from a dead ball catching the entire stadium off guard with his left boot. The stunning strike set the tone for the match – but it was Nashville who responded next.
Hany Mukhtar, the 2022 MLS MVP, leveled the match right out of the halftime whistle, banging a header into the back of the net off an Andy Najar cross after the German forward beat both Maxi Falcon and Hector Martinez in the box. However, Messi would respond shortly after, and with it, he scored the winner.
The Argentine capitalized on a mistake from Nashville goalkeeper Joe Willis in the 62nd minute, intercepting a pass played out of the back by the veteran goalkeeper. Willis, who immediately realized his mistake, was rounded by the Argentine before he calmly slotted home to make it 2-1.
With the victory, Miami extended their league win streak to five matches and is now unbeaten in the last six in MLS action. They’re also up to 38 points on the campaign, and trail conference leaders Philadelphia by five points – though the Herons have three games in hand.
BALLGM rates Inter Miami players from Chase Stadium…
Lionel Messi made more history Saturday evening as Inter Miami defeated Nashville SC 2-1 at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Argentine, scorer of both goals for the Herons on the evening, made it five-straight matches with a brace – becoming the first player in MLS history to achieve the feat, extending his already-standing record of four games with multiple goal contributions.
A crucial three points for the South Beach club, it was a contentious showing from the away side, but in the end, the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner’s brilliance proved to be the difference at the end of the day.
Messi opened the scoring in the 17th minute of the match, driving home a low-driven free kick from a dead ball, catching the entire stadium off guard with his left boot. The stunning strike set the tone for the match – but it was Nashville who responded next.
Hany Mukhtar, the 2022 MLS MVP, leveled the match right out of the halftime whistle, banging a header into the back of the net off an Andy Najar cross after the German forward beat both Maxi Falcon and Hector Martinez in the box. However, Messi would respond shortly after, and with it, he scored the winner.
The Argentine capitalized on a mistake from Nashville goalkeeper Joe Willis in the 62nd minute, intercepting a pass played out of the back by the veteran goalkeeper. Willis, who immediately realized his mistake, was rounded by the Argentine before he calmly slotted home to make it 2-1.
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With the victory, Miami extended their league win streak to five matches and is now unbeaten in the last six in MLS action. They’re also up to 38 points on the campaign, and trail conference leaders Philadelphia by five points – though the Herons have three games in hand.
BALLGM rates Inter Miami players from Chase Stadium…
Oscar Ustari (6/10):
A few nervy moments, but overall, a solid 90-minute showing.
Marcelo Weigandt (6/10):
Didn’t stand out, but didn’t particularly commit any errors, either. Did what was asked of him and helped secure the win.
Maxi Falcon (6/10):
Locked up Sam Surridge most of the night, but lost his marker on Mukhtar’s goal. Not his best performance of late, though.
Hector Martinez (5/10):
A rare start for the Paraguayan, he got caught open on Nashville’s first goal, and didn’t look too comfortable alongside Falcon.
Jordi Alba (6/10):
Overall solid performance. Combined well going forward and was defensively sound.
Tadeo Allende (6/10):
Provided attacking width, but rarely threatened. Just an uneven showing from a winger who has been excellent of late, which saw him removed early on.
Sergio Busquets (6/10):
Struggled to contain Nashville’s attack, but locked up the game late with some solid defensive play.
Benjamin Cremaschi (7/10):
Fought brilliantly alongside Busquets in a box-to-box role. He’s taken on a less attacking role in recent weeks and really stood out.
Telasco Segovia (5/10):
Not a performance for the youngster to remember. He was a complete ghost on the pitch.
Luis Suarez (6/10):
Some solid interplay and good hold-up positioning, but was never a threat in front of net for the away side.
Lionel Messi (9/10):
Five straight games with a brace. What else is there to even say at this point? Unreal.
Federico Redondo (6/10):
Brought some stability to the game, but was relatively nonexistent.
Baltasar Rodriguez (6/10):
Little to no impact whatsoever with a 28-minute cameo.
Tomas Aviles (N/A):
Subbed on late to close things out.
Ryan Sailor (N/A):
Brought on in stoppage time.
Javier Mascherano (5/10):
A win is a win, right? But this was a game where two moments of absolute brilliance from Messi secured them all three points. This was a fortunate win for the Herons as they couldn’t break Nashville down, and they had very few answers for their counter-attack. It felt as though Mascherano underestimated the Eastern Conference side, and it almost proved to be costly.
