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Inter Miami vs New England Revolution score, result, stats as Lionel Messi brace leads Herons to emphatic win

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When Lionel Messi is on the pitch, Inter Miami are unquestionably the best team in Major League Soccer. That much was clear at Gillette Stadium on Saturday, as the Herons put on a second-half show in front of a record crowd, beating the New England Revolution 4-1 to stay atop the Supporters’ Shield standings.

Messi was the star of the show the entire way through, officially scoring two goals and assisting one more but in actuality he had a hand in all four strikes for the visitors. Inter Miami were pegged back briefly off the jump, as Tomas Chancalay took advantage of a Drake Callender error just 37 seconds into the match to put the Revs in front, but a virus that ran through the New England squad 24 hours before the match took its toll and they ran out of steam as the game approached halftime.

After a strong spell of attacking pressure, Messi brought Inter Miami back level just past the half-hour mark, and put them in front in the 68th minute. It was methodical from the Eastern Conference leaders, as they took their time picking out their chances and limiting New England’s transition opportunities.

As the game wound down, Benjamin Cremaschi cleaned up a saved Messi effort for Inter Miami’s third in the 83rd minute, and then Messi assisted a Luis Suarez goal in the final minute of regulation to cap it all off. The win kept Inter Miami three points clear atop the Eastern Conference standings, having played a game more than the clubs directly below them in the table.

A number of injured players either returned or are close to doing so as well, as Tata Martino’s prospects appear brighter by the week. Messi, meanwhile, moved to the top of the MLS individual charts, now on nine goals and seven assists for the season, alone atop the goals table and tied at the top of the assists rankings.

The Sporting News followed the Inter Miami vs. New England Revolution match live, providing score updates, commentary and highlights as they happened.

Inter Miami vs New England final score

  Score Goalscorers
New England 1 Chancalay (1′)
Inter Miami 4 Messi (32′, 68′),
Cremaschi (83′),
Suarez (89′)

Kickoff: 7:42 p.m. ET / 4:42 p.m. PT
Location: Gillette Stadium (Foxboro, MA)
Referee: Rubiel Vazquez

Starting lineups:

New England (4-2-3-1), right to left): 1. Ravas (GK) — 12. Lima, 4. Kessler, 3. Arreaga, 88. Farrell (Spaulding, 72′) — 8. Polster (Harkes, 60′), 28. Kaye (Borrero, 81′) — 21. N. Gil, 10. C. Gil, 18. Boateng (Vrironi, 72′) — 5. Chancalay.

Inter Miami (4-4-2, right to left): 1. Callender (GK) — 57. Weigandt, 6. Aviles, 21. Freire, 33. Negri — 24. Gressel (Cremaschi, 74′), 5. Busquets, 41. D. Ruiz — 10. Messi, 8. Campana (Suarez, 64′), 16. Taylor (Rojas, 74′).

Inter Miami vs New England stats

New England Stat Inter Miami
7 Shots 12
1 Shots on target 6
44% Possession 56%
417 Passes 551
2 Corners 4
4 Fouls 10
0 Yellow cards 0

Inter Miami vs New England live updates, highlights, commentary

FULLTIME: New England 1-4 Inter Miami

It felt inevitable from about the 30th minute on that Inter Miami would come away from this one with an emphatic victory. Lionel Messi’s eighth and ninth goals of the MLS season would officially put them in front, and then he played creator on the final two goals as the Herons romped to a win in front of a record Gillette Stadium crowd.

New England were dealt a tough hand with the pre-match virus that ravaged the squad, and it was evident they didn’t have the energy reserves to make it through the 90 minutes — in the end, they didn’t come close, as the hosts started to fade before halftime and were cooked by the hour mark.

Inter Miami vs New England: Second Half

89th min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! Luis Suarez puts the result out of sight as he picks out the top corner from the penalty spot! Lionel Messi touches inside onto his left at the top of the penalty area, and he feeds Suarez with his back to goal. The Uruguayan turns and fires with nobody challenging him whatsoever, and it gives Inter Miami a fourth.

83rd min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! Benjamin Cremaschi is back for Inter Miami from injury and back on the scoresheet! David Ruiz does exceptionally well on the overlap with Matias Rojas, and he feeds Lionel Messi from eight yards out.

Messi blasts it right at the goalkeeper, and Henrich Ravas makes the save, but he falls on his rear and parries the ball right to Cremaschi at the far post, and he’ll never have an easier finish than this from point-blank range into an empty net.

78th min: The Revolution have started seeking an equalizer, but they can’t quite get the necessary end product — everything is either off target or blocked by an Inter Miami defender. A corner is dangerous but Sergio Busquets clears.

The Revs bring Dylan Borrero onto the pitch, which is a big moment for the club as an important player returns to action following a long absence due to an ACL tear. He replaces Mark-Anthony Kaye.

74th min: New England have some quality moves forward, one of which wins a corner, but it comes to nothing. Inter Miami make a pair of substitutions as Benjamin Cremaschi comes into the midfield for Julian Gressel, while new signing Matias Rojas makes his debut for the Herons in place of Robert Taylor. Rojas’s introduction means Inter Miami have used the most players in MLS this season.

The Revs make a pair of changes themselves, with Giacomo Vrironi and Ryan Spaulding coming on for Emmanuel Boateng and Andrew Farrell.

68th min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! Lionel Messi has his second of the match and puts Inter Miami in front!! It’s all too easy this time, as Sergio Busquets feeds a sensational vertical ball into a very tight window, and Messi finishes from a tight angle! It had been coming, will they find a third to put it away, or will New England have a response?

64th min: Now Tata Martino makes his first substitution, bringing Luis Suarez into the game for Leonardo Campana, who struggled on his return from injury.

60th min: This game has ground to a halt. Both teams have slowed things down on the ball, with New England wanting to kill clock and Inter Miami looking to take their time to find a winner. Henry Kessler, on his 100th appearance for New England, makes a vital intervention on an Inter Miami buildup, their first in a while.

New England makes the first change, as an ill Matt Polster is replaced by Ian Harkes. The expected record Revs crowd is official, as 65,612 fans are on hand to witness this match.

53rd min: Chance, Inter Miami! Julian Gressel puts a cross on a platter for Inter Miami center-back Nicolas Freire, but he can’t get good power on it and the effort is saved! That’s a well-worked chance, but the headed attempt didn’t quite have the mustard to get past Henrich Ravas who gets down to his left to smother the ball.

52nd min: New England are looking to make a dent in the Inter Miami back line, but while they create a good amount of chaos in the penalty area, they can’t quite get through for a good effort on goal. That’s better from them though, after a poor overall first half.

46th min: Just one minute into the second half, Inter Miami have a chance to counter, but Leonardo Campana leaves a through-ball for Lionel Messi woefully short. It was there, and didn’t exactly require a pass of great difficulty, but the Ecuadorian striker just got it all wrong.

Kickoff: The second half is under way, with no changes for either side. Can New England turn the tide of this match, or will Inter Miami’s dominance towards the end of the first 45 minutes carry over to the start of this second half and see them run away with the three points?

HALFTIME: New England 1-1 Inter Miami

It’s level at the break, but it’s been all Inter Miami since about the 15th minute, and feels like they will leave with the three points if this run of play continues. Tomas Chancalay punished Drake Callender for a goalkeeping error 37 seconds into the match, but New England has had very little since then.

The hosts are extremely short-handed thanks to an illness that ran through the squad in the last 24 hours, and it shows. The Revs have faded as the first half went on, and they don’t appear to have their legs. Some players in the New England lineup, like Mark-Anthony Kaye, needed fluids via IV at the hospital last night just to be available for this match, and if this continues, Lionel Messi will be feasting in the second half.

Still, as it stands, the match is level. New England will be bolstered by that fact — the question is how long will it last?

Inter Miami vs New England: First Half

39th min: Inter Miami have the first corner of the match for either side, and it’s a great ball by Lionel Messi (obviously) who picks out an unmarked Julian Gressel arriving late on the back post, but the Inter Miami midfielder completely botches his header, and gets the contact all wrong, skying it nowhere close to the New England goal.

38th min: New England have their first foray into the attacking third for quite some time, but a cross attempt by Emmanuel Boateng is blocked very well by Inter Miami right-back Marcelo Weigandt who turns his back and snuffs out the build-up. It’s a necessary intervention, because it did feel like New England could have been in if a better ball had been sent into the area.

32nd min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! Lionel Messi has the breakthrough for Inter Miami, and we’re level! The visitors had been looking for him throughout this long spell of pressure, and while the first ball from Robert Taylor was rejected by the New England back line, it comes right back to the Finland international, and with a second attempt, he threads Messi in perfectly.

With the Argentine legend clean through on goal, he isn’t going to miss that chance, bagging his eighth goal of the MLS season, tied for the most in the league.

29th min: Inter Miami are turning up the heat now. A long spell of possession results in a few balls into the penalty area, with one Franco Negri shot blocked and another Lionel Messi right-footed effort saved by Henrich Ravas down low.

Moments later it comes back at New England, as a looped ball in to Messi on the doorstep is just over his head, and then Franco Negri overcooks the return ball back over the penalty area in the opposite direction. New England suddenly can’t get out of their own third, but Inter Miami haven’t had the cutting edge needed just yet.

26th min: Chance, Inter Miami! David Ruiz delivers a curler that isn’t far from the top-right corner, but in truth it wasn’t meant to be a shot. The young Honduran was looking to pick out a teammate at the back post, but over-hit his delivery. It ended up coming close to an equalizer, even if not intended to do so.

18th min: Inter Miami finally have their first shot attempt as Franco Negri’s cross is met by the head of Leonardo Campana but he puts it way over. The cross was poor, a high looper that everyone had to wait forever for it to come down. Negri has not put a good ball in yet with a few chances to do so.

14th min: Lionel Messi and Robert Taylor combine well down the middle to develop their best attacking move so far, but Franco Negri has two crosses blocked and the chance evaporates. That’s where an injured Jordi Alba is greatly missed.

Messi’s touch in the buildup is just his fourth of the game, and his completed pass just his second. He has to be more involved for Inter Miami to be at their most effective.

9th min: Inter Miami have presented very little danger to the New England defensive setup through the opening 10 minutes of this match. Plenty of time for them to build into this game, but so far it’s only the hosts who have been able to progress forward into the opposition third so far.

1st min: GOAL! NEW ENGLAND! INTER MIAMI ARE STUNNED JUST 37 SECONDS INTO THE MATCH! It’s a dream start for New England as Tomas Chancalay has the ball in the back of the net! A nothing ball down the right finds Chancalay, but he’s hemmed in out wide.

For some unknown reason, Drake Callender comes out to challenge despite two defenders being on hand, and that allows Chancalay the opportunity to take a first-time chip over the Inter Miami goalkeeper and into the back of the net. What was Callender thinking??

Kickoff: They’re under way at Gillette Stadium, 12 minutes after the advertised start time, in front of a huge crowd! Inter Miami can establish themselves as clear Eastern Conference leaders with three points tonight, opening up a five-point lead atop the table, even as they’ve played two more games than the second place side New York Red Bulls.

Taylor Twellman reports prior to kickoff that one player in the New England lineup, Matt Polster, is also part of the illness going around the New England squad, but starts regardless, so his energy levels will be something to watch.

Inter Miami vs New England: Pre-match commentary, analysis, more

15 mins to kickoff: In stark contrast to the shorthanded New England Revs in this match are Inter Miami, who themselves have a number of players absent due to injury but are healthier than expected in this game. The return of both Leo Campana and Robert Taylor are a boost to the walking wounded Herons, and with Benjamin Cremaschi back fit and both Jordi Alba and Federico Redondo to return in a few weeks, there is some promise of a return to normalcy.

Add in that Diego Gomez’s injury was not as serious as initially feared, and the situation is surprisingly positive for Gerardo Martino who not long ago would have been sweating out his squad’s availability amidst a title challenge this season. What a difference a few days makes.

30 mins to kickoff: It seems the reported illness amongst the New England squad has hit a few key spots. Forwards Esmir Bajraktarevic and Bobby Wood are absent from the squad completely, which seems to suggest they were amongst those affected. The loss of Bajraktarevic is the most debilitating, as while the 19-year-old U.S. youth international is having a slow start to the season, his influence is critical to this Revs’ squad.

The goalkeeper room is also badly thinned — backups Aljaz Ivacic and Earl Edwards were not part of the matchday squad, while the club announced the emergency signing of JD Gunn to a short-term deal, and the 24-year-old former Memphis Tiger makes the shorthanded seven-man bench for the Revs.

All told, New England could only name seven substitutes despite being allowed to have nine on the bench for any given league match.

45 mins to kickoff: Lineups have been released. Lionel Messi starts for Inter Miami, but Luis Suarez is left amongst the substitutes as Gerardo Martino takes the opportunity to rest his aging Uruguayan striker with a chronic knee issue. In his place is Leo Campana who returns from a hamstring injury, as does Robert Taylor on the wing.

For New England, it’s hard to know what moves are tactical and what are forced due to the reported illness making its way through the Revs’ squad. There is no natural striker in the XI, which looks to be a 3-5-2 with the addition of a third center-back in new signing Xavier Arreaga. The absence of young star Esmir Bajraktarevic is the most glaring.

1 hour to kickoff: With lineups imminent, a record crowd of around 65,000 is expected at Gillette Stadium tonight for this match!

1 hour 15 mins to kick: Uh oh. As if the hosts needed any more adversity facing tonight’s match, there are rumblings on social media that New England is facing some kind of illness spreading throughout the squad as they suit up for the game. Could there be a few wrinkles in the starting XI due to this? We’ll find out in around 15 to 20 minutes.

1 hour 30 mins to kick: Lionel Messi’s seven MLS goals on the season so far may not quite lead the league, as Cristian Arango has one more, he is well above the Real Salt Lake frontman when it comes to goals per minute. Messi has his seven strikes in just 495 minutes, or one every 70.7 minutes, compared to Arango’s eight goals in 805 total league minutes.

Still, Messi does not lead the league in that category, as Christian Benteke of DC United has five goals in 353 minutes, which gives him a mark of one every 70.6 minutes, just pipping Messi’s average. The season, however, is still very young.

1 hour 45 mins to kick: Tickets to tonight’s match are selling at above the average NFL ticket for the New England Patriots last year, closing in on $300. The Lionel Messi effect.

How do we know it’s down to Messi being in town? There’s a get-in price for the Revs next home game against the Chicago Fire of $18.

2 hours to kickoff: Lionel Messi is off to an historic start to the 2024 MLS season, and if he keeps this pace up through the remainder of the season, he will become Inter Miami’s career leading goalscorer in no time. The club is only in its fourth season of existence, so the bar isn’t terribly high, but he is chasing a fellow Argentine for that mark.

Gonzalo Higuain is currently the club’s all-time leading career scorer, with 29 to his name. Current player Leonardo Campana is second with 25, and Messi is third with 20 across all competitions.

Inter Miami vs New England pre-match figures

  • Nobody has assisted more of Lionel Messi’s career goals than Luis Suarez, who recorded his 50th serve to the Argentine legend in last weekend’s win over Nashville SC.
     

  • This season represents only the second time in Lionel Messi’s career that he has recorded goal contributions in six straight league games to start a season, after his 2013/14 season with Barcelona. That campaign, he followed up that hot start with just one goal contribution over his next seven LaLiga appearances.
     

  • Four points through their first eight games marks New England’s worst start to a season in club history.

Inter Miami vs New England lineups, team news

New England midfielder Noel Buck was withdrawn just before halftime in the loss to Toronto last weekend, and while his quad injury is mild according to head coach Caleb Porter, he has been held out of this game, replaced by Canadian international Mark-Anthony Kaye.

American international DeJuan Jones is out for a few weeks with a hamstring injury, while fellow full-backs Peyton Miller and Brandon Bye are also shelved for another few weeks, along with offseason signing Jonathan Mensah. Winger Dylan Borrero is out for another month with a knee issue, as is Tommy McNamara with a hamstring problem.

The club traded for former Seattle Sounders center-back Xavier Arreaga this past week, and he slots straight into the starting lineup. An illness has forced the likes of Esmir Bajraktarevic and Bobby Wood to miss the match, while backup goalkeepers Aljaz Ivacic and Earl Edwards are also absent, with the club forced to sign JD Gunn to an emergency short-term deal an hour before the game.

New England starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Ravas (GK) — Lima, Kessler, Arreaga, Farrell — Polster, Kaye — N. Gil, C. Gil, Boateng — Chancalay.

New England subs (7): Gunn (GK), Borrero, Harkes, Panayotou, Spaulding, Suarez, Vrioni.

Inter Miami have an incredibly lengthy injury list, which continues to threaten the squad’s place at the top of the Eastern Conference. The latest to succumb to injury is Diego Gomez, who went down with an ankle injury in the win over Nashville last time out, sidelined for 4-6 weeks which is better than the dreaded Achilles tear which was first feared.

He joins the likes of hamstring quartet Serhiy Kryvstov and Jordi Alba on the shelf, while Federico Redondo needs another month or so to recover from his knee injury. However, Robert Taylor and Leonardo Campana have returned to fitness from their hamstring injuries and start, with Luis Suarez given the chance to rest in this road match against a struggling opponent.

New midfield signing Matias Rojas is available for this match off the bench, while Brazilian winger Leo Afonso is also a substitute option after assisting a goal off the bench against Nashville in place of Ruiz.

Inter Miami starting lineup (4-3-3): Callender (GK) — Weigandt, Aviles, Freire, Negri — Gressel, Busquets, D. Ruiz — Messi, Campana, Taylor.

Inter Miami subs (9): Dos Santos (GK), Sailor, Allen, Sunderland, Bright, Cremaschi, Rojas, Afonso, Suarez.

How to watch Inter Miami vs New England


This match will be streamed exclusively on MLS Season Pass from Apple TV, where every game of the 2024 Major League Soccer campaign can be found.





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