Messi became the first player in MLS history to score multiple times in four straight games with two goals vs. the Revolution Wednesday
Lionel Messi made more MLS history Wednesday evening as Inter Miami defeated the New England Revolution 2-1 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The Argentine scored both goals as the took all three points on the road, winning their fourth-straight regular-season match while stretching their MLS unbeaten streak to five matches.
It was a record-setting evening for multiple reasons, including Messi becoming the first player in MLS history to ever score multiple goals in four matches in a row. For New England, it was their highest-attended home match of the season at 43,293. Last season, the Revs saw 65,612 attend their match against Messi and Miami – the largest turnout in franchise history.
As for the match itself, Messi opened the scoring 27 minutes into the game after Revs' defender Tanner Beason attempted to head the ball back towards his goalkeeper, Aljaz Ivacic, only to see it intercepted by the Argentine and tucked home into the back of the net for his first of the evening. He then doubled Miami's lead 11 minutes later, tucking home a delightful through ball from Sergio Busquets, slotting home into the bottom right corner of the net underneath the diving body of Ivacic.
The Revolution had multiple chances to get themselves back into the match, but they lacked a clinical finish until the closing stages of the game. With 10 minutes to spare, club stalwart Carles Gil fired home from distance with a blistering effort after dribbling past Tomas Aviles, cutting the deficit in half. However, it was too little, too late for the Northeastern club as their attacking momentum arrived in the closing stages of the game, and they were never able to find an equalizer.
Miami, upon return from the FIFA Club World Cup, has now won two straight while outscoring their opposition six to two. With Wednesday's victory, the South Beach club moved up to 35 points on the campaign through 18 matches played, putting them fifth in the Eastern Conference standings. They trail first-place FC Cincinnati by seven points, but have three games in hand.
GOAL US rates Inter Miami's players from Gillette Stadium…
Get the MLS Season Pass today!Stream games nowGoalkeeper & Defense
Oscar Ustari (7/10):
Nothing he could do about Gil's goal Was otherwise tidy in net all evening.
Marcelo Weigandt (6/10):
Defensively sound all evening, but didn't quite bring the attacking threat Mascherano had hoped with his progressive play up the pitch.
Tomas Aviles (6/10):
Was completely opened up for the Revs' goal, but was otherwise defensively sound.
Maxi Falcon (7/10):
Aggressive and strong alongside Aviles, he thwarted nearly every Revolution attempt that came at him. Great performance.
Jordi Alba (6/10):
A quiet night from the Spaniard, but he locked down his flank when tested.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportMidfield
Tadeo Allende (7/10):
Lively going forward, and often found himself creating chances going forward. Didn't make it on the scoresheet, but had a great game.
Sergio Busquets (8/10):
Cheeky assist on Messi's second, and an otherwise solid midfield performance. Classy from the veteran.
Federico Redondo(5/10):
Didn't quite impress alongside Busquets. Picked up a pointless yellow.
Baltasar Rodriguez (5/10):
Handed his first start for Inter Miami in MLS action, the young Argentine picked up a yellow for dissent and was otherwise pretty quiet all evening.
Getty Images SportAttack
Lionel Messi (9/10):
Capitalized on an early New England error to open the scoring and then doubled the lead with a spectacular finish. History maker.
Luis Suarez (7/10):
A few decent moments off the ball opening space for others, but just couldn't get anything going in the final third himself.
Getty Images SportSubs & Manager
Telasco Segovia (6/10):
Introduced with roughly 30 minutes to spare, but made very little impact on the game.
Benjamin Cremaschi (N/A):
Brought on with 10 minutes to spare to help close out the match.
Hector Martinez (N/A):
Introduced with minutes to spare.
Javier Mascherano (7/10):
Questions have to be asked of him for not rotating Messi and Suarez sooner, considering it's a triple-game week for the However, tactically, Miami was sound and got the job done on the road.