Lionel Messi leads Inter Miami to its first-ever Supporters Defend

Lionel Messi and Inter Miami have one other trophy, together with home-field benefit all through the Main League Soccer playoffs.

Messi scored twice within the closing minutes of the primary half, goalie Drake Callender stopped a penalty kick within the 84th minute and Inter Miami beat the defending MLS Cup champion Columbus Crew 3-2 on Wednesday night time, wrapping up the Supporters Defend given yearly to the workforce with one of the best regular-season document.

It was Messi’s forty sixth main trophy gained for membership or nation, extending his document for probably the most by any males’s soccer participant in historical past. And it’s the second he has gained with Inter Miami, this Supporters Defend being added to the Leagues Cup trophy the Herons claimed shortly after Messi joined the membership in 2023.

“We knew this was a bunch that might struggle for this,” Messi stated.

Luis Suárez additionally scored for Inter Miami, which is able to open a best-of-three first-round playoff collection within the closing weekend of October. If the workforce wins that collection, it could have the suitable to host each match it performs the remainder of the season — an Japanese Convention semifinal (scheduled for Nov. 23 or 24), the East closing (Nov. 30 or Dec. 1) and the MLS Cup closing on Dec. 7.

“We’ve got a pleasant alternative to go down in historical past … and now we take into consideration what’s coming,” Messi instructed Apple TV after the match. “We’ve got an ideal benefit in that we play all of the video games at residence, which was what we had been in search of. I feel that we’re very, very sturdy at residence.”

Additionally nonetheless inside attain for Inter Miami: one of the best MLS regular-season mark ever. Wednesday’s win pushed Inter Miami’s document to 20-4-8 this season, giving it 68 factors. If the membership wins its closing two matches — Saturday at Toronto and Oct. 19 at residence in opposition to New England — it could end with 74 factors.

New England has the single-season factors document, ending with 73 in 2021.

Messi opened the scoring within the forty fifth minute, taking a protracted cross from Jordi Alba — his longtime teammate at Barcelona, the membership with which Messi gained 35 of his trophies — and splitting two defenders earlier than by some means getting the ball previous Columbus goalkeeper Patrick Schulte for a 1-0 lead.

And about 5 minutes into first-half stoppage time, Messi struck once more on a free kick from about 30 yards out. Schulte appeared fooled, and Messi squeezed the ball between the goalie and the close to publish for a 2-0 lead.

“Dominant,” Inter Miami coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino stated.

Diego Rossi scored within the first minute of the second half for Columbus to chop the lead in half, however it didn’t take lengthy for Inter Miami to revive the two-goal cushion. Virtually instantly after play resumed, Schulte was upended by certainly one of his personal defenders and Suarez despatched a header into an empty internet for a 3-1 edge.

Juan “Cucho” Hernández’s penalty kick within the 61st minute bought Columbus inside 3-2. However as soon as once more, the momentum didn’t final for lengthy. Rudy Camacho was despatched off for his second yellow card within the 63rd minute, that means the Crew needed to play with 10 males the remainder of the best way.

Didn’t matter. Columbus nonetheless created some huge probabilities down the stretch.

A deflected ball within the 76th minute bought throughout the field and onto the suitable foot of Mohamed Farsi — however his shot was blocked by Callender, who was completely positioned to guard the lead.

Then got here extra drama, when Inter Miami was known as for its second handball contained in the field — an computerized penalty kick — of the second half. Hernández picked the left aspect of the web, however Callender made the save look virtually simple.

That save helped end what Messi began.

It was the fifth two-goal recreation of the MLS season for Messi, who now has 17 objectives in 17 league matches this season. He’s missed 15 of Inter Miami’s MLS matches in 2024, both due to commitments to Argentina’s nationwide workforce or the two-month absence that he wanted to recuperate from a badly injured ankle — an harm that occurred throughout his nation’s run to the Copa America title in July.

Inter Miami, in MLS play this season, is now 10-1-6 with Messi within the lineup.

“All year long we had many, many accidents, the place we couldn’t all be collectively … however the group was getting probably the most out of each robust recreation,” Messi stated.

The Crew and the LA Galaxy entered Wednesday nonetheless with a mathematical hope of passing Inter Miami within the race for the Supporters Defend, and Cincinnati was 9 factors again with 9 factors nonetheless potential.

However now, they’re all enjoying for second.

“Dec. 7 is what we would like,” Martino stated, referring to the date of the MLS Cup closing. “However this isn’t insignificant at this time.”