On Saturday afternoon at the Chess Stadium, a historic victory was achieved with a 5-0 win over rivals Orlando City SC by Inter Miami, marking the largest margin of victory in the club’s history. Striker Luis Suarez put on a magnificent performance, scoring two goals and providing two assists, while Lionel Messi also scored a goal, Robert Taylor scored his second goal of the season, Julian Gressel notched his first two assists for Inter Miami, and goalkeeper Drake Calendar secured his second clean sheet of the season. Clean sheet of the season!
In Short
Lineup Notes
Inter Miami made a change in the lineup from last weekend’s trip to LA Galaxy. Calendar started in goal; Dendre Yedlin, Thomas Evils, Nicolas Frey, and Jordi Alba formed the backline, Gressel, Sergio Busquets, and Diego Gomez were in midfield; captain Messi and Taylor started upfront alongside striker Suarez.
In particular, Argentine defender Frey made his official debut for Inter Miami and MLS as part of the starting eleven.
What Happened
The first meeting between the Florida rivalries in this 2024 season didn’t take long to arrive for spectators in the Chess Stadium stands when Suarez scored in the fourth minute of play. Due to high pressure from the opponents, Messi seized control of the ball in the opponent’s third and found Gressel on the right flank, where the versatile midfielder delivered a precise grounded pass into the box for Suarez. With this, Suarez scored his first goal in Major League Soccer, and Gressel contributed his first assist to the team.
Suarez’s Brace
A few minutes later, Suarez completed his brace in the 11th minute to extend Inter Miami’s lead in the first half. Gressel initiated another team play near the halfway line, playing the ball towards Alba, who then ended up finding Suarez outside the box on the left side. Suarez scored his first goal of the year with a half-volley to the far post with his left foot, and Gressel picked up his second assist of the year.
Gressel and Suárez do it AGAIN to double the lead 🔥🔥#MIAvORL | 2-0 pic.twitter.com/79DJxKFxmj
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) March 2, 2024
Suarez added an assist in the 29th minute to round off his outstanding first-half performance. Gressel once again participated in the build-up, playing a delightful through ball towards Suarez, who patiently waited in midfield to create space before sending a pass towards Taylor on the left flank, where the versatile attacker concluded the sequence by slotting home from a tight angle. This was Suarez’s second assist of the year and Taylor’s second goal of the campaign.
Messi in Second Half
Inter Miami didn’t slow down in the second half and continued to press on their opponents relentlessly during the second 45 minutes. As a result of constant pressure in the attack, two more goals were scored, Messi added his name to the scoresheet with two goals within five minutes. First, in the 57th minute, from Alba’s attempt over the keeper, a defender attempted to clear but the ball bounced off the crossbar and fell inside the box, where the Argentine star chested it down before sending it past the keeper for his second goal of the season.
A4⃣for4⃣deal going on at @chase_stadium💥
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) March 2, 2024
Jordi 🤝 Messi for the fourth of the match #MIAvORL | 4-0 pic.twitter.com/As9fWdVRL9
Then in the 62nd minute, the captain once again found the back of the net to make it 5-0 for Inter Miami, Gomez gained possession in the center of the pitch and provided Suarez space on the left side of the field, where he delivered a cross into the box for Messi, who calmly finished with a header at the far post. This was Messi’s third goal of the season, while Suarez recorded his second assist of the match and Gressel his third assist of the campaign.
The scoreline remained unchanged in the remaining minutes, and Inter Miami claimed a resounding 5-0 victory, marking the largest margin of victory in club history in the first edition of the Florida rivalry in 2024.
Also Read : “Inter Miami CF: Messi and Callender Shine, Earn Valuable Road Point against LA Galaxy”
Next up for Inter Miami
Inter Miami will now head to Nashville to kick off their participation in the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup, facing Nashville SC in the first round of the Round of 16 on Thursday, March 7, at 9 PM at Geodesic Park.
