Inter Miami CF scored four second half goals to defeat New England Revolution 4-1 on Saturday. Lionel Messi contributed two assists towards their win.
New England started the match strong. Carles Gil lofted a ball to Brandon Bye at the back post but his header went just over the crossbar.
| Team | Goals | Scorers | Assists | Match Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inter Miami CF | 4 | Lionel Messi (2), Luis Suárez (1), Robert Taylor (1) | Jordi Alba (1), Sergio Busquets (1), Messi (1) | Winner |
| New England Revolution | 1 | Giacomo Vrioni (1) | Carles Gil (1) | Lost |
Goals
Inter Miami CF got off to an explosive start at Chase Stadium with Jordi Alba scoring Inter’s opening goal just 30 seconds in. The forward collected a loose ball at the back post and beat an opponent before shooting into the net for Inter. Revolution goalkeeper Matt Turner made several saves during these early minutes before Carles Gil helped New England create another opportunity with a cross that hit off of the crossbar en route to Brandon Bye and went in.
At halftime, Revolution interim head coach Pablo Moreira made two changes – with Luca Langoni replacing Mamadou Fofana and Alhassan Yusuf coming on for Allan Oyirwoth – as Leo Campana and Jordan Allen held off any potential chances before the break. Tomas Chancalay registered three shots during his 19 minute appearance but couldn’t break through Miami’s well-organized defense; Jordi Alba was later awarded Major League Soccer Player of the Week honors due to his performance vs Miami defense; *Jordi Alba was awarded Major League Soccer Player of the Week honors due to his performances during this matchup
Assists
Lionel Messi may not have scored, but his three assists helped Inter Miami defeat New England Revolution 4-1 at Fort Lauderdale on Saturday. Messi set an MLS single game record by amassing three assists; it stands as second only to Cristiano Ronaldo who held that feat five times; it shows what one of the world’s premier playmakers he is.
Messi first made his mark in the 32nd minute when he delivered a precise through ball for Allende on the run. Minutes before halftime, however, he intercepted a New England clearance near their own goal and returned it directly to Alba for him to score from. Messi made another significant contribution late in the half when he intercepted another clearance near their own goal and delivered it directly back for him to score again and open up a 2-0 advantage for Barcelona.
Dor Turgeman scored in the 59th minute to narrow the deficit, but could not complete an unlikely comeback: Messi’s subsequent corner kick was met with Carles Gil’s line drive for the final score.
Inter Miami improved their playoff chances and moved into third place in the Eastern Conference’s Major League Soccer standings with 59 points – trailing only second-place FC Cincinnati by two but still with two matches left to play.
Javier Mascherano has led an extraordinary turnaround at Toronto FC since taking over as coach in July, earning himself the Major League Soccer Executive of the Year award in 2019. Under his guidance, they’ve posted an outstanding 12-4-2 regular season record that included five straight victories and have the potential for making deep playoff runs for the first time ever in franchise history.
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Goalkeepers
The Revs came back from two-goal deficit to score three goals in 32 minutes during their late comeback attempt but were ultimately unable to catch Inter Miami and ultimately fall by five points to finish third in Eastern Conference, five behind Philadelphia and six ahead of NYCFC respectively.
New England had their initial opportunity when Carles Gil floated a cross to Brandon Bye at the back post, only for his header to strike off of the crossbar and go wide of goal. Soon thereafter, however, Boston began testing their backline; Lionel Messi forced a diving save from Matt Turner in 14th minute alone!
Turner made four saves on Thursday in his last match before departing for international duty with the United States Men’s National Team. Unfortunately, Jordi Alba connected with Tadeo Allende via a no-look through ball and scored past Turner to further extend the Revolution’s deficit.
New England attempted a comeback in the 59th minute, but their attempt was cut short by Miami’s quick counterattack after a turnover. Following said turnover, Miami No. 10 floated an overhead pass to Allende who easily beat Turner for his second goal of the night.
With 10 minutes remaining in the match, the Revs switched out Mamadou Fofana for Alhassan Yusuf and Dor Turgeman scored his second goal of the year by collecting a pass from Gil, outwitting an opponent, and racing past an immobilized Falcon goalie.
Mascherano replaced Busquets to allow him to receive a standing ovation from the home crowd before his retirement announcement next week, before being replaced himself shortly thereafter with Mascherano himself in order to earn another standing ovation from them before final whistle blew and New England suffered their ninth loss of the season, only winning once of nine league games played thus far. New England have lost both home matches since April of 2024, losing nine out of 15 away matches this season and are tied with Orlando City as having the worst road record in Major League Soccer this season.
Saves
Inter Miami goalkeeper Oscar Ustari made five saves overall during this matchup – three in the first half and two at night, for an unprecedented total in his Major League Soccer (MLS) career.
Inter Miami made an early mark against New England despite an uncertain start, taking the lead after 27 minutes thanks to an error by their defense which allowed Messi to move unimpeded into the penalty area, and scoring with his left foot for his 13th goal of this 2025 regular season regular season.
Shortly before halftime, the Revolution came close to scoring again but were denied by Ustari when Leonardo Campana shot was saved by him. Following halftime, however, they intensified their pressure and Carles Gil lofted a cross towards Brandon Bye; unfortunately for their opponents though, his header hit off the crossbar instead.
Luca Langoni entered as a late replacement for Emilio Rodrguez and quickly contributed to the attack, setting up Tadeo Allende for his third goal with an exquisite pass into the middle of the field. Messi completed his double in the 77th minute following an exquisite play involving Federico Redondo, Busquets and Telasco Segovia; his goal extended his current streak to four consecutive games with multiple goals and brought his total for this season up to seven.