May 5, (THEWILL) – Inter Miami produced a scintillating second-half display to demolish the New York Red Bulls 6-2 in Major League Soccer on Saturday. Lionel Messi was at the heart of the rout, providing a record five assists and netting a goal himself as former Barcelona teammate, Luis Suarez, scored a hat-trick.
After falling behind to Dante Vanzeir’s opener for the Red Bulls, Inter trailed 1-0 at half-time. However, the introduction of a substitute, Matias Rojas, sparked an astonishing turnaround. Rojas equalised within three minutes of the restart before Messi put Inter 2-1 up. The Argentine maestro then teed up Rojas again as the Paraguayan made it 3-1.
Suarez took over from there, volleying home from a Messi assist to make it 4-1. The Uruguayan striker then exchanged passes with Messi to poke home Inter’s fifth. Messi’s fifth assist created the sixth, with Suarez turning in from a tight angle. Emil Forsberg’s late penalty was scant consolation for the Red Bulls.
“The partnership of him (Messi) and Luis (Suarez) in the second half worked very well, like in old times,” said Inter coach Gerardo Martino. “They were very influential in the game.” For Suarez, Messi’s performance came as no surprise: “Obviously what we have seen today surprises people, because you don’t see that in football. But as a teammate and someone who knows him, nothing surprises me about him.”
The rampant victory saw Messi take his tallies to 10 goals and 12 assists in just eight MLS appearances this season. For 37-year-old Suarez, his hat-trick took his league tally to 10 goals in 11 games as the former Barcelona stars continue to shine in Miami.
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.
