- Luis Suarez finally found his spark at Inter Miami with two goals and two assists
- Lionel Messi added a brace himself, while Robert Taylor also found the net
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It took a while for Luis Suarez to find his spark at Inter Miami, but when he finally did, he did so in spectacular fashion.
The Uruguayan scored his first and second goals in MLS and provided two assists as he, Lionel Messi and his colleagues ran riot during Inter Miami’s victory over Florida rivals Orlando City.
The Florida derby was expected to live up to the rivalry, but the Lions were made to look like kittens against old Messi and Suarez, who scored two goals each.
Saturday’s victory left the Herons undefeated through the first three games in club history and kept them atop the Eastern Conference.
Suarez, David Beckham’s blockbuster signing this off-season to join former Barcelona teammates Messi, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, burst into life after just four minutes.
Luis Suarez finally scored his first goal for Inter Miami in the 5-0 win over Orlando City
Lionel Messi also bagged a brace in the defeat of Heron’s Florida rivals on Saturday evening
The duo gave MLS fans a glimpse of their vintage Barcelona quality
He produced a stunning first-time low cross from Julian Gressel and smashed it into the top right corner to give Miami the dream start.
Seven minutes after breaking the ice, Gressel and Suarez teamed up with El Pistolero again, putting the finishing touches on a nifty give-and-go with the US international to double the lead.
Suarez could easily have converted his brace into a hat-trick in the 29th minute, but instead he opted to pass through goal to Robert Taylor, who extended Miami’s lead to a comfortable 3–0 before half-time.
Suarez’s cross from the right wing found an open Taylor against a failed offside trap from the Orlando City backline and the Finnish midfielder tapped in a shot from 15 yards.
The second half heralded the arrival of a touch of Messi magic as the Argentine added to Suarez’s lead with two of his own players.
His first wasn’t his best as the Argentine cleared the ball over the line after it had been curled around the penalty area, but the quality of his second was not in question as he secured a 5-0 victory and top spot in the Eastern Conference Inter sealed. Miami.
Messi joined the scoring attack with his first goal in the 57th minute. Suarez’s shot deflected off the crossbar and an unmarked Messi easily tapped the shot in just inches from the goal line.
Suarez’s centering pass from the left wing found an open Messi, whose header closed the scoring in the 62nd minute.
Tensions escalated when Suárez exchanged words with the Orlando players as they left the field before half-time.
The former Liverpool star bagged his brace just 11 minutes into the match at Chase Stadium
Messi joined the scoring attack after the break with his first goal in the 57th minute
Messi simply tapped the shot in inches from the goal line after Suarez’s shot was deflected
The Uruguayan celebrates one of his goals in the first half with Julian Gressel
Saturday began a seven-match month for Inter Miami, while Argentina have also called up Messi for two friendlies over a four-day period later in March.
Inter Miami coach Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino said on Friday that Messi’s playing time will be closely monitored.
In addition to five league matches, Inter Miami will face Nashville SC in a home-and-home set of the CONCACAF Nations Cup round of 16. Argentina will play El Salvador on March 22 and Costa Rica on March 26 as a precursor to the Copa America later. this summer.
Shortly before Saturday’s kick-off, Jaime Herrera Guiherme replaced Ceretta as center referee after photos of Ceretta on social media created a potential conflict of interest.