Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls score, result, stats as Lionel Messi sets MLS record for assists

Kyle Bonn

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Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls score, result, stats as Lionel Messi sets MLS record for assists image

Records are falling left and right under the weight of Lionel Messi’s star, and his buddy Luis Suarez is right there alongside him.

Inter Miami hosted the New York Red Bulls seeking revenge for a 4-0 defeat back in March, and the Herons were wildly successful in that regard, running away as 6-1 winners at Chase Stadium.

Messi slaughtered another MLS opponent, setting two league records in the process as he logged a goal and five assists in a 6-2 victory to pad their lead atop the Eastern Conference standings.

As the dust settled, Messi had secured the most goal contributions in a single MLS match with six, and the most assists in a single MLS match with five. He was the clear Man of the Match, but wasn’t the only star performer — Suarez was the biggest beneficiary of Messi’s magic, logging a hat-trick, and new signing Matias Rojas bagged a pair of goals off the bench, his first two for the club.

MORE: See the full updated MLS top goal scorers list as Lionel Messi leads the Golden Boot rankings

Given all that, you might be surprised that Inter Miami were actually down at the halftime break, trailing 1-0 on a spectacular counter-attack goal by Dante Vanzeir on the half-hour mark. But the Herons only faced a deficit thanks to their inability to finish chances across the first 45 minutes, and they made good on that in a big way after the break

The win puts Inter Miami three points clear at the top of the table as second-place FC Cincinnati kept pace with a win of their own. Of Inter Miami's 24 points this season, 17 of them have come in matches where they trailed at some point.

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

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls final score

  Score Goal scorers
Inter Miami 6 Rojas (48', 62'),
Messi (50'),
Suarez (69', 76', 81')
NY Red Bulls 2 Vanzeir (30'),
Forsberg (90+5')

Kickoff: 7:40 p.m. ET / 4:40 p.m. PT
Location: Chase Stadium (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)
Referee: Tori Penso

Starting lineups:

Inter Miami (4-3-3, right to left): 1. Callender (GK) — 57. Weigandt, 21. Freire, 6. Aviles, 33. Negri (Allen, 84') — 41. D. Ruiz (Ruiz, 46'), 5. Busquets, 24. Gressel (Cremaschi, 66') — 10. Messi, 9. Suarez (Campana, 84'), 16. Taylor (Bright, 66').

NY Red Bulls (4-4-2, right to left): 31. Coronel (GK) — 6. Duncan, 15. S. Nealis, 4. Reyes, 47. Tolkin — 8. Amaya (Manoel, 72'), 75. Edelman, 19. Carmona (Donkor, 82'), 10. Forsberg — 13. Vanzeir (Gjengaar, 82'), 9. Morgan.

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls live updates, commentary

FULLTIME: Inter Miami 6-1 New York Red Bulls

After trailing 1-0 at the halftime break, what a remarkable, record-setting turnaround for Inter Miami, led by their ageless superstar Lionel Messi!

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls: Second Half

90+5 min: PENALTY, NEW YORK! The match is over, but the Red Bulls have a late chance for a consolation as John Tolkin is fouled by Marcelo Weigandt, who stomps on the foot of the young Red Bulls full-back.

Emil Forsberg steps up to take, and...GOAL! NEW YORK! Forsberg delivers a wonderful spot-kick, as Drake Callender guesses correctly but can't reach the ball which is tucked perfectly inside the right post.

90+1 min: Chance, Inter Miami! Sergio Busquets sends a trademark looped ball over the top for Lionel Messi, but the Argentine displays some evidence of humanity as he puts his shot just inches wide right under heavy pressure from a trailing defender. You'd have expected him to score that!

86th min: The game is gone but the Red Bulls aren't quite done yet. Emil Forsberg is fouled just outside the top of the penalty area to give the visitors a free-kick. There's a bit of a scuffle before the set-piece can be taken, which  has to be broken up.

81st min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! Lionel Messi sets an MLS record with five assists in one match, as Luis Suarez bags a hat-trick! It's finished by the Uruguayan from a very tight angle, as records continue to fall under the weight of Messi and Suarez!

That's Suarez's last contribution of the match, as he's withdrawn shortly after with Leonardo Campana coming on.

76th min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! The wheels have fallen off for the Red Bulls, and Lionel Messi feeds Luis Suarez for a 5-1 Inter Miami lead! It's the fourth assist of the game for Messi and second goal for Suarez, as those two combine yet again in their prolific careers. A complete turnaround for Inter Miami, while the Red Bulls have totally fallen apart.

72nd min: The New York Red Bulls finally make their first substitution down 4-1, as Frankie Amaya is withdrawn in favor of Elias Manoel.

69th min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! Lionel Messi with his third assist of the game and fourth goal contribution, as Luis Suarez finishes it off to put the Herons clean through to a 4-1 lead! It's a wonderful finish as Messi just dinks it past John Tolkin to the middle where Suarez rifles a ninja kick into the net. So impressive!

66th min: Inter Miami make two more changes, as Benjamin Cremaschi and Yannick Bright enter the game for Julian Gressel and Robert Taylor. Gressel has played a ton of minutes this season and Tata Martino has made a point to get him some rest in recent weeks with early substitutions.

62nd min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! It's a total, thorough turnaround from Inter Miami who are lifted by superstar Lionel Messi! The Argentine legend dinks and dunks through the New York defense, and he feeds Rojas clean through on goal for the chipped finish which hangs in the air forever before nestling into the Red Bull net. A goal and two assists for that man Messi, and Rojas has a brace!

60th min: Chance, Inter Miami! The hosts are absolutely cooking now. A great cross from the left goes through the legs of Robert Taylor on the intentional dummy, traveling across the penalty area to Julian Gressel at the far post, but he drags the shot wide left with a shot across the face of goal.

57th min: Tomas Aviles picks up a yellow card for a hard foul on Emil Forsberg, who thankfully is ok. That was a really ugly tackle to the side of Forsberg's knee. There's an argument for that to be a straight red card.

50th min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! LIONEL MESSI COMPLETES THE TURNAROUND WITH TWO GOALS IN TWO MINUTES! Inter Miami win the ball high up the pitch as they snatch it from Wiki Carmona in the attacking third, and Luis Suarez taps it to Messi for the easy finish!

The Red Bulls have been stunned here to start the second half and now suddenly trail in the blink of an eye! Would you believe it's triggered by the superstar Messi who assisted the first and scored the second!

48th min: GOAL! INTER MIAMI! A first Inter Miami goal for Matias Rojas just minutes after entering the match! Lionel Messi plays it centrally for Rojas who cuts left and turns on the afterburners, bursting onto his left past two defenders and crashes a shot home from outside the top of the box.

It's an exquisite finish from Rojas who pings it past a diving Carlos Coronel!

Kickoff: There's one halftime substitution as they get the second 45 minutes under way, but interestingly, it's not made by the side with three yellow cards. Instead, it's made by Inter Miami as Tata Martino swaps out David Ruiz for new signing Matias Rojas. We'll have to see if that's injury-related or tactical.

HALFTIME: Inter Miami 0-1 New York Red Bulls

Inter Miami dominated the first half, but failed to take advantage of their host of chances in front of net, while the Red Bulls were the ones to make the most of their best opportunity. Through three halves of play this season, the Red Bulls have outdone Inter Miami by a combined 5-0 score. Lionel Messi has been strong but the hosts have yet to cash in.

If this continues, Inter Miami should find at least a goal or two, so changes will have to be made for the Red Bulls, but their danger on the counter is ever-present.

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls: First Half

44th min: Chance, Inter Miami! Nicolas Freire meets a corner delivery at the far post but can't keep it down! He rose very high to meet the ball but puts it a few feet over the crossbar.

Two minutes of stoppage time are shown.

37th min: Now a brilliant tackle from John Tolkin stops another Inter Miami counter-attack, dispossessing David Ruiz who appeared free on goal. What a job from the Red Bulls defense over the past two minutes!

Shortly after, Kyle Duncan becomes the next player booked in this match, meaning both Red Bulls full-backs are on yellow cards. Then moments later, Wiki Carmona is also shown a yellow card as the disciplinary action begins to mount for the visitors, which is a concern as head coach Sandro Schwartz thinks about halftime changes.

36th min: Wow, Inter Miami had a four-on-two break run by Lionel Messi, but the Argentine doesn't see teammates on either side running free, keeping his head down on the dribble. He decides to take it himself, and is dispossessed by a strong tackle from Andres Reyes. That's a really poor job by Messi while running at the opposing goal, which is not a common occurrence.

30th min: GOAL! NEW YORK! A vicious counter-attack run by Emil Forsberg carves Inter Miami open before Dante Vanzeir finishes it off! Forsberg expertly touches past one defender on midfield before he unloads a spectacular side-footed pass perfectly weighted for Wiki Carmona on the run.

Carmona's effort across the face of goal pings the post, but the rebound falls to Vanzeir who can poke it into an open net with Drake Callender on the ground having dove for the initial shot.

25th min: Inter Miami are starting to put New York under significant pressure, with a host of shots for the Red Bulls' back line to deal with. The latest sees Carlos Colonel have to punch away before Luis Suarez can get his head to a cross on the goal mouth, after he saves a low shot from Lionel Messi from distance.

John Tolken picks up the game's first yellow card after a heavy first touch sees him stretch over and into Marcelo Weigandt for a hard foul.

19th min: Chance, Inter Miami! Great one-touch football sees Marcelo Weigandt put forth a volleyed effort into the Ft. Lauderdale sky! It's in a good position off a header back from Julian Gressel, but the Inter Miami full-back blasts it way high.

13th min: Chance, Inter Miami! The hosts dump it down for Luis Suarez who very clearly fouls his defender with a push in the back, but the referee lets it go. Suarez gets support from Lionel Messi, and he puts an effort on goal but it's turned away by Carlos Colonel. If that had gone in, VAR would have had a long look at the Suarez incident, and probably would have been ruled out.

8th min: Chance, New York! Frankie Amaya shoots from straightaway over 25 yards out, and he delivers a bending rip that forces Drake Callender into a diving stop!

7th min: Sergio Busquets has already been whistled for two fouls, the latest causing the Spaniard to get up with a frustrated yell towards the referee Tori Penso, who in turn pauses the match briefly to tell Busquets to calm himself.

4th min: The Red Bulls have had a few good attacking moments at the start of this game, the latest being a Lewis Morgan ball sent in from the left for Dante Vanzeir, but the Red Bulls striker is whistled correctly for a high boot to the face of Nicolas Freire.

Kickoff: They're under way at Chase Stadium in South Florida! Who will end the day with the advantage at the top of the Eastern Conference standings?

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls stats

Inter Miami Stat RBNY
16 Shots 15
7 Shots on target 5
58% Possession 42%
560 Passes 391
3 Corners 3
8 Fouls 11
1 Yellow cards 3

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls: Pre-match commentary, analysis

15 mins to kickoff: The end of the 150th Kentucky Derby just concluded with one of the tightest photo finishes you'll see, with three horses all separated by an inch. Will that be a foreshadow to a photo finish at Chase Stadium tonight? Lionel Messi has rescued Inter Miami late before!

30 mins to kickoff: The New York Red Bulls sit third in the Eastern Conference table, but they probably have been good enough for even more. They've been held to five draws this season, and probably have an argument to say they were the better side in all five. So many teams have fallen short to Lionel Messi's Inter Miami over the past calendar year after failing to take their chances, so if the Red Bulls collapse in front of goal, they will rue their misses at the end of the 90 minutes.

45 mins to kickoff: Lineups are in, and Lionel Messi starts for Inter Miami amidst an XI with very few surprises. Sergiy Kryvtsov only makes the bench on his return from injury, while Luis Suarez returns to the starting lineup after coming off the bench last game.

For New York, Kyle Duncan steps in for Dylan Nealis at right-back, while Dennis Gjengaar is replaced by Frankie Amaya in midfield.

1 hour to kickoff: Tonight's match is one of 12 games on the MLS fixture list, and all of them are free to watch on MLS Season Pass, as Apple TV has slated every single game of this entire weekend free to air for those with or without a subscription!

1 hour 15 mins to kick: The last time these two teams matched up, it was no contest, as the Red Bulls ran away as 4-0 winners on a hat-trick from Lewis Morgan, with Dante Vanzeir assisting all four goals, a delicious attacking performance from the hosts in New Jersey.

Morgan is in great form this season, but the biggest difference between that game amidst the March international break and this one is that Lionel Messi will take part, as will a number of other international players for both sides.

1 hour 30 mins to kick: Slowly, Inter Miami are getting healthier. This weekend, it's Serhiy Kryvtsov who returns to the squad. It's unclear whether the aging Ukrainian defender is fit to start along the back or whether he'll be used primarily off the bench, but his availability alone is key for a thin defensive unit.

Jordi Alba remains out, as does Diego Gomez and Federico Redondo, but it's a positive for the Herons that players are returning while nobody new has gone down in some time. Of course, that can all change in an instant, but for now, the injury news remains positive.

1 hour 45 mins to kick: While Inter Miami can already be considered Messi & Friends with the presence of Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba, and Luis Suarez, they might add yet another of the Argentine's closest mates in football. There are swirling reports that the club is in talks with Angel Di Maria about a summer signing once the European season is done.

Di Maria, an Argentine national team legend and close friend of Messi's, is out of contract this summer after a quality campaign with Portuguese club Benfica. Could he be the latest aging star to join the MLS club?

2 hours to kickoff: Last weekend's games saw Lionel Messi overtake Cristiano Ronaldo in one stat category between the two in their ever-present career rivalry. Messi now has 723 non-penalty goals in his career, while Ronaldo has 721. Messi has also achieved his total in 161 fewer games, which tracks as he is two years younger.

Ronaldo has always been his team's penalty taker throughout his career for club and country, while Messi has had less success from the spot, so it makes sense that he would do more of his damage from other situations.

However, that was undone earlier today when Ronaldo scored a perfect hat-trick for Al Nassr, putting him back in front of the race.

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls pre-match facts, figures

  • Luis Suarez logged his 50th assist to Lionel Messi last weekend, the most of any player in Messi's career.
  • Lionel Messi has logged a goal contribution in his first six league appearances of a season for just the second time in his career, alongside his 2013/14 season with Barcelona. He has never recorded one in seven straight to begin a league season.
  • Lewis Morgan has seven goals in the club's first 10 games of the MLS season, something no Red Bulls player has done since Thierry Henry in 2012/13, when he scored nine goals in his first eight games of the year before cropping up with an injury.

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls lineups, team news

There are two big questions for Tata Martino ahead of this match regarding his squad's availability. First, Jordi Alba has missed the last two games with a hamstring injury, and the timeline for his return is still unclear, ruled out for this match as Franco Negri continues in his place at full-back.

Luis Suarez came off the bench against the New England Revolution last weekend amidst a chronic knee issue that needs consistent management, but is back in the starting lineup after a one-week absence.

Otherwise, Inter Miami are beginning to get healthier each week. Diego Gomez is down for another few weeks with an ankle injury, but Serhiy Kryvtsov could return from his hamstring injury. Federico Redondo remains out with a knee problem, and ACL victim Facundo Farias remains out for the season.

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

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

The New York Red Bulls will be without their most-used center-back Noah Elie who is suspended for his red card against the Whitecaps last weekend. Otherwise, the absentee list for the Supporters' Shield contenders is minimal.

Peter Stroud is down for a few weeks due to an ankle injury. Besides that, it's just a few youngsters who dot the injury list, like Wake Forest draftee Roald Mitchell who has a knee issue to worry about that will keep him out until the summer, while academy products Serge Ngoma and Ronald Donkor are missing with minor issues.

NY Red Bulls starting lineup (4-4-2): Coronel (GK) — Duncan, S. Nealis, Reyes, Tolkin — Amaya, Edelman, Carmona, Forsberg — Vanzeir, Morgan.

NY Red Bulls subs (8): Meara (GK), O'Connor, D. Nealis, Haper, Donkor, Hall, Gjengaar, Manoel.

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Kyle Bonn

Kyle Bonn Photo

Kyle Bonn, is a Syracuse University broadcast journalism graduate with over a decade of experience covering soccer globally. Kyle specializes in soccer tactics and betting, with a degree in data analytics. Kyle also does TV broadcasts for Wake Forest soccer, and has had previous stops with NBC Soccer and IMG College. When not covering the game, he has long enjoyed loyalty to the New York Giants, Yankees, and Fulham. Kyle enjoys playing racquetball and video games when not watching or covering sports.