Inter Miami CF (8W-3L-5D, 29 points) earned a dominant 5-1 win over Columbus Crew tonight. The win presented a brilliant performance from captain Lionel Messi, who earns Royal Caribbean Icon of the Match honors, with a brace and three assists on the night. Attackers Tadeo Allende, Luis Suárez and Fafa Picault also got onto the scoresheet to lead the team to victory at Chase Stadium.
Additionally, with his two goals and three assists, Messi became only the second player in MLS history to record at least five goal contributions in a game multiple times, while also reaching 31 goals to surpass Gonzalo Higuaín (29) for the most MLS regular season goals in Club history. Suárez, meanwhile, recorded his 33rd goal for the team across all competitions and passed Leonardo Campana (32) for the second most goals in Inter Miami history.
Lineup Notes
Inter Miami kicked off the match with Óscar Ustari in goal; Marcelo Weigandt, Maximiliano Falcón, David Martinez and Noah Allen made up the team’s back four; Benjamin Cremaschi and Sergio Busquets started in midfield, flanked by Tadeo Allende and Telasco Segovia; Messi and Suárez led in attack.
Match Action
Inter Miami took the lead early on through an Allende strike in the 13th minute. A precise line-splitting ball over the top from Messi found Allende in space on the right end of the box, who buried the ball in the back of the net with a first-time, right-footed finish across goal for his sixth strike this regular season. The assist, meanwhile, was the fourth for Messi in league play in 2025.
Shortly after, Messi extended the team’s lead in the 15th minute. Our Club captain scored with a left-footed attempt from outside the box to capitalize on a misplaced pass from the Columbus Crew goalkeeper to take his team-leading goal tally to nine this regular season.
Messi would then secure his brace on the night in the 24th minute with a superb finish over the keeper following an inch-perfect pass over the opposition’s backline from Busquets. The goal was Messi’s 10th this regular season, while the assist was the third for Busquets. Notably, with his two goals tonight, Messi (31) surpassed Gonzalo Higuaín (29) for the most MLS regular season goals in Club history.
Columbus Crew opened the second half with a goal from defender Cesar Ruvalcaba to cut Inter Miami’s lead to 3-1.
Minutes later in the 64th minute, Suárez reestablished the host’s three-goal lead. A fantastic passing sequence in transition was capped off by a grounded finish to the near post from inside the box from the Uruguayan striker. The goal was Suárez’s fifth this regular season, while the assist and secondary assists took Segovia’s and Messi’s tally to five each respectively. With his goal, Suárez (33) passed Leonardo Campana (32) for the second most goals in Inter Miami history.
Inter Miami then rounded out the result with a goal from second-half substitute Fafa Picault in the 89th minute. A beautiful through ball from Messi left the Haitian attacker one on one against the keeper, before he slotted the ball in the bottom right corner for his fourth goal this regular season. The assist, meanwhile, was Messi’s third in the match and sixth overall in the league in 2025. With the assist on the play, Messi (two goals, three assists in the match) became just the second player in MLS history to notch at least five goal contributions in a game multiple times in his career, joining Diego Rossi (two such games each).
The 5-1 scoreline would subsequently remain unchanged through the final minutes for Inter Miami to claim all three points.
Post-match Reaction
"I want to thank the players, because in the end they understood the message—but above all, for having the courage to want to play. I think in these last few matches, the guys have gotten it and lifted a weight off their shoulders. But we have to keep going; this alone isn’t enough. We need to keep building," said head coach Javier Mascherano.
Next Match
Next, Inter Miami will enter a pause in MLS regular season action until June 28, as the team will compete in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.
Stats
Possession:
MIA - 46%
CLB - 54%
Shots:
MIA - 15
CLB - 11
Saves:
MIA - 0
CLB - 2
Corners:
MIA - 4
CLB - 6
Fouls:
MIA - 8
CLB - 12
