March 17, (THEWILL) – Luis Suarez came off the bench to score twice in the second half as Inter Miami overcame the absence of Lionel Messi to defeat DC United 3-1 at the Audi Field, on Saturday, in Washington.
Leonardo Campana also scored and provided an assist for Inter Miami, who have now won three of their first five Major League Soccer matches this season. The match was Inter’s second straight without Messi featuring.
The talismanic Argentine sat out last weekend’s loss to CF Montreal for rest before sustaining a muscle injury in his right leg midweek against Nashville SC in the CONCACAF Champions Cup. DC United took the lead through Jared Stroud’s 14th-minute strike, but Campana equalised 10 minutes later.
Suarez, brought on as a substitute in the 62nd minute, put Inter ahead in the 72nd minute when he converted Campana’s pass from close range. The Uruguayan then sealed the points in the 85th with a looping effort that crept over the line despite DC goalkeeper Alexander Bono getting a hand to it.
The victory sees Inter Miami climb to 10 points through five games, while D.C. United remained on five points from their first four matches. Suarez now has four goals in MLS play and six in his last five games across all competitions for his new club.
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.
