Lionel Messi scored his 12th goal of the season and added his sixth assist as Inter Miami defeated the Portland Timbers 2-0 on Sunday evening to finally secure their first win in their new stadium.
German Berterame added his fifth goal for Miami, which had previously gone 0-3-1 at Nu Stadium, the permanent facility for the Herons that opened its doors in early April.
Dayne St. Claire made four saves to keep him and his club’s third clean sheet of the campaign and first since a 2-0 win at Real Salt Lake on April 22.
Portland lost 2-0 on the road for a fourth time this season, including three of their last five away fixtures. The Timbers were outshot 22-16 overall and 9-4 in efforts on target.
Messi sits tied with Dallas’ Petar Musa and one behind Chicago’s Hugo Cuypers for the MLS scoring lead. The 38-year-old Argentine has now contributed five goals and all six of his assists in his last four games as he prepares to play one last World Cup this summer.
He got started early Sunday, forcing James Pantemis into a save from close range in the fourth minute, and he had his goal 27 minutes later.
Messi began the attack from beyond the penalty arc, playing a pass to Luis Suarez on his left and then making a run into the center of the box.
Suarez fed Telasco Segovia, who played a clever backheel into Messi’s path for a simple finish into the right half of the goal as Pantemis guessed with his lunge in the opposite direction.
Messi’s assist 11 minutes later was of the vintage variety that recalled his best days as an FC Barcelona star and eight-time Ballon d’Or winner.
Rodrigo de Paul’s early cross from the right found Messi, who used his chest to control it, laid it off to Suarez on his left and then quickly reached a return pass.
From there, he weaved into the penalty area on the dribble, slaloming between four defenders before laying it off to Berterame on his left for a first-time finish from about 10 yards out.
–Field Level Media
