February 22, (THEWILL) — Defeat greeted Inter Miami CF on their return to MLS regular season football, with the club falling 3-0 to LAFC at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Saturday evening, in the opening match of the 2026 campaign.
Head coach, Javier Mascherano, fielded a side with Dayne St. Clair between the sticks, a back four of Ian Fray, Maximiliano Falcón, Micael and Noah Allen, with Rodrigo De Paul and Yannick Bright operating in midfield.
Mateo Silveti, captain Lionel Messi and Telasco Segovia supported Germán Berterame in attack. The contest brought four official debuts for the club. St. Clair, Micael and Berterame started from the off, while right back Facundo Mura came on from the bench.
LAFC struck in the 38th minute with a David Martinez opener, assisted by Heung-Min Son. Denis Bouanga made it two in the 73rd minute before providing the assist for Nathan Ordaz to slot in a third in added time to seal a comfortable victory for the hosts.
Mascherano was direct in his assessment after the final whistle. “We clearly know we have a lot to improve. We need to keep building on the positive things we have done, correct the mistakes we made, and keep moving forward,” he said. The club will next face Orlando City away on Sunday.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
