As Inter Miami welcomed the Philadelphia Union to Chase Stadium on Saturday, the Herons also saw a familiar face return to the lineup in Lionel Messi. After suffering an ankle injury during the Copa America final, Messi had been absent from league play for 105 days, but with a brace in the first half and an assist late, it was like he didn’t miss a beat with Miami defeating the Union 3-1.
The Herons went behind only two minutes into the match but as the attack began to take control, Luis Suarez assisted Messi for the equalizer in the 26th minute. It was a great team goal from Miami with the buildup coming from deep and there was nothing that the Union could do to stop it.
His second goal involved a great dummy run from Suarez again as he got onto the end of Jordi Alba’s cross to give the Herons a lead going into halftime. It’s quite an impressive feat that Miami are already running a four-match winning streak without Messi and now that he’s back the team is getting into another attacking gear.
Defensively, Tomas Aviles has to work out his own jitters as he’ll be suspended for Miami’s next match due to yellow card accumulation but when a deficit can be overturned in the blink of an eye, there’s room for error. The Herons are still leading the race for the Supporters’ Shield and the MLS points record of 73 could also be in reach if they keep putting the ball in the back of the net like this.
Injuries once again reared their head with Hector Martinez being withdrawn in the first half and being replaced by Noah Allen. Nicolas Freire is already out for the season in the center of Miami’s defense which will lead to questions of how Tata Martino will line up the team on Wednesday against Atlanta United. Sergio Busquets will also be suspended for that match and times like this are when he’s needed in defense.
Without heroics from Drake Callender, the match could’ve turned out differently. The Union put eight shots on target but Callender was right where he needed to be to contain them. Near the end of the match when it seemed like the Union could push for an equalizer, that’s when Messi again made his presence felt drawing in the defense before playing the ball to Luis Suarez for a powerful shot. It’s Suarez’s 17th goal of the season as the Uruguayan chases the MLS Golden Boot in his first season in the league.
Moments like that show how perfect a team needs to be when facing Miami because in just a moment, the Herons can make magic happen. They’ve become hard enough to beat without Messi this season and with the Argentine, stopping them before they break the single season points record could be easier said than done.
KVSP