New York RB 1-5 Inter Miami: Messi 2 goals & 1 assist, Busquets & Suárez assist

Game is over and the final score is New York RB 1-5 Inter Miami CF. Here is the match report.

Match Report

Lionel Messi had two goals and two assists to lead Inter Miami CF to a bounce- back 5-1 win over the host New York Red Bulls on Saturday night in Harrison, New Jersey.

Messi and Inter Miami (12-4-5, 41 points) erased a 1-0 first-half deficit with a flurry of goals before the break -- two of them coming off the foot of Telasco Segovia -- that staked the Herons to a 3-1 lead ahead of the second half.

Miami won its sixth MLS match in its past seven after having a five-game winning streak snapped at Cincinnati on Wednesday. It was also the sixth time in the last seven games in which Messi has scored two goals.

The Red Bulls (9-9-6, 33 points) failed to string together consecutive wins at home and lost to Inter Miami for the second time this season.

New York scored its lone goal in the 15th minute when Emil Forsberg lifted a corner kick in front of Miami goalkeeper Rocco Rios Novo's line of sight. Alexander Hack then kicked it home for the score despite having defender Federico Redondo draped all over him.

Rios Novo made his second start this season for Oscar Ustari, who sat out with an injury.

Jordi Alba, who exited the game in the 84th minute with what appeared to be a leg cramp, scored his first goal of the season in MLS league play off a cross from Messi in the 24th minute to tie the game1-1.

Inter Miami took the lead for good in the 27th when Luis Suarez, who assisted on the first goal, sent a ball ahead to Messi, who then directed it quickly to Alba, who then crossed it back to Segovia for an easy shot into the back of the net.

In the third minute of first-half stoppage time, Redondo advanced the ball into the Red Bulls' box but could not fire off a shot. Segovia, though, surged in and fired a shot off a rebound past Carlos Miguel Coronel for a third goal.

Messi followed with goals in the 60th and 75th minutes to seal the outcome.

Messi increased his total goals in MLS games to 18 this season and has contributed on 27 scores. He has 40 goals in MLS since joining the league in the summer of 2023.

The Red Bulls mustered nine shots in the match, but they were outshot 8-1 in shots on target.

Match Events

0' GOAL! New York RB 1-1 Inter Miami CF Messi sets up Suárez, Alba to score

0' Match Event for New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

1' Match Event for New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

6' Match Event for New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

10' Match Event for New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

15' GOAL! New York RB 1-0 Inter Miami CF A. Hack scores with a close-range tap-in

27' Messi chips to Alba, Segovia scores  New York RB 1-2 Inter Miami

35' Highlight from New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

43' Highlight from New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

48' GOAL! Segovia scores from outside the box New York RB 1-3 Inter Miami CF

54' Highlight from New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

56' Match Event for New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

59' Busquets delivers perfect assist, Messi scores one-on-one NYRB 1-4 Inter Miami

68' Highlight from New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

75' Suárez crosses, Messi finishes from the center New York RB 1-5 Inter Miami CF

86' Match Event for New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

89' Match Event for New York RB vs Inter Miami CF

Line-ups

New York RB XI: Choupo-Moting, Forsberg, A. Hack, Carlos Coronel, Raheem Edwards, Sean Nealis, Noah Eile, Daniel Edelman, Julian Hall, Ronald Donkor, Mohammed Sofo

Subs: Tim Parker, Kyle Duncan, Peter Stroud, Wikelman Carmona, Dylan Nealis, Dennis Gjengaar, AJ Marcucci, Omar Valencia, Wiktor Bogacz

Inter Miami CF XI: Messi, Suarez, Alba, Busquets, Maximiliano Falcón, Marcelo Weigandt, Rocco Ríos Novo, Telasco Segovia, Tadeo Allende, Gonzalo Luján, Federico Redondo

Subs: William Yarbrough, Fafà Picault, Ryan Sailor, David Ruíz, Benja Cremaschi, Tomás Avilés, Santiago Morales, Yannick Bright, Leo Afonso