Record-setting Gillette Stadium watches Messi and Miami shine
Fans from all over New England flocked to Gillette Stadium, the home of the Revolution, to see Messi in action. The attendance was a record-breaking crowd.
An unprecedented 65,612 spectators flocked to Gillette Stadium on Saturday night. The previous record was set on October 20, 2002, when 61,316 fans filled the same stadium. They went there to witness the New England Patriots play the Los Angeles Galaxy.
The greatest of all time delivered as promised. The 36-year-old put on a spectacular display, scoring twice and setting up another as Miami cruised to a 4-1 win. In fact, the Herons captain was instrumental in all three of his side’s goals.
It has thus made him the first player in Major League Soccer history to do so in five straight games. From seven games, he has scored nine goals, which is the most in the league.
How did Inter Miami fare in first half?
At Gillette Stadium, Tata Martino fielded a starting eleven that included two substitutes from last weekend’s victory against Nashville. They took the field with Drake Callender in goal, alongside Marcelo Weigandt, Tomas Aviles, Nicolas Freire, and Franco Negri forming the four-man defense.
In the middle of the field, Julian Gressel, Sergio Busquets, and David Ruiz lined up, while captain Lionel Messi and Robert Taylor flanked striker Leonardo Campana. Hosts Tomás Chancalay put the game on the board in the first minute of play, giving his team a commanding lead.
A goal from Inter Miami in the 32nd minute gave the visitors hope after the hosts took an early lead. After gaining control beyond the penalty area, Taylor set up Messi with a through pass; the Argentine genius got the ball on the right side of the penalty area and calmly finished off a left-footed shot that beat the keeper.
Leo scored his eighth goal of the regular season and his tenth goal of the season in all competitions with this goal. Meanwhile, Taylor picked up his second assist of the season with this assist. In the first seven games of his season, the Argentine contributed to 14 goals, making him the leader in this season’s MLS scoreboard.
This makes him the first player in league history to accomplish the milestone, surpassing Carlos Vela (13 goals) and Thierry Henry (11 goals). On top of that, he became only the sixth player in MLS history to have a goal assist in each of his first seven games that season.
How did Inter Miami fare in second half?
The former Barcelona captain kept up his brilliant play in the second half, assisting Inter Miami in turning the game around. He found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper in the 68th minute after Busquets threaded a pass into the area; he scored the first goal for the visitors with a left-footed effort to the far post, putting them up 2-1.
Messi now has nine goals for the season and eleven for the year in all competitions, while Busquets now has three assists for the season and four for the year in all competitions. Cremaschi then put his club up 3-1 in the 83rd minute after scoring off a rebound.
With this, the 19-year-old scored in only his third appearance of the season. To cap off the goal-scoring extravaganza, Luis Suarez would score five minutes later.
Photo credit: IMAGO / ZUMA Wire