Inter Miami picked up three more points in Major League Soccer action as Luiz Suarez bagged a brace to propel the south Florida side to a 4-1 triumph over Chicago Fire.
Both Eastern Conference teams exchanged blows in the opening stages with lots of space open in transition. However, the visiting Herons would strike first 25 minutes into the first half in the form of an own goal.
Diego Gomez found himself with space down the right-hand side and teed up Luis Suarez with a low-driven cross to the center of the Chicago penalty area. Suarez’s strike on goal was met by Chris Brady, but the goalkeeper’s save bounced off his defender Tobias Salquist and into his own net to give the Herons the lead.
Suarez was denied once again moments later after a powerful header bounced off the crossbar and out of harm’s way for the Fire — but Suarez would go on to get on the scoresheet at the start of the second 45.
El Pistolero was played through on goal by Gomez once again, and the former Gremio striker finished with ease with his weaker left foot to double Miami’s lead. It was an excellent pass to setup the Uruguayan by Gomez with an even better finish to silence the home fans at Soldier Field.
The Herons weren’t done scoring, though. Suarez bagged his brace to score his 16th MLS goal of 2024 after a simple cross across the Fire’s penalty area from former Barcelona teammate Jordi Alba. Suarez made no mistake from just a few yards away as Alba grabbed his eighth assist of the campaign.
Just as the Herons were closing in on their sixth clean sheet of the season, Chicago pulled one back with less than 10 minutes to go in regulation. Former LAFC midfielder Kellyn Acosta sent in a inviting low-driven cross into the Miami penalty area that Georgios Koutsias tapped home from close range.
Miami would reinstate their three-goal lead in stoppage time as two of Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino’s substitutes combined to make in 4-1 in favor of the visitors. Leo Campana was all alone down the right-hand side of the pitch to play a simple ball across the Chicago penalty area for Robert Taylor to fire into the back of the net past Brady.
Even though the legendary Lionel Messi hasn’t made his long-awaited return from an ankle injury, the Herons haven’t shown any signs of slowing down. The win over Chicago was the 18th MLS victory of the season for Miami as Martino’s side sit in first place in the Supporters’ Shield with 59 points from 27 matches played while the Fire’s struggles continue in 14th place in the Eastern Conference table.
Inter Miami player ratings ( 3-4-3 )
GK: Drake Callender – 6/10 – Practically a bystander in the first half and it was almost the same story in the second half until Koutsias scored from close range — not much he could’ve done there.
CB: Ian Fray – 7/10 – Stepped up to take on a different role at center-back and was mostly solid.
CB: Sergio Busquets – 7/10 – Continues to fill in as the central center-back and hasn’t looked out of place. Came up with a huge block in the opening minutes to deny Hug Cuypers a tap-in goal while also standing tall against Maren Haile-Selassie.
CB: Hector Martinez – 7/10 – Started off on the wrong foot as he struggled with Haile-Selassie. However, he improved as the match wore on.
RWB: Marcelo Weigandt – 6/10 – Didn’t really have the desired impact in an attacking sense but his consistent pressing did put the Fire under pressure at times.
CM: Federico Redondo – 6/10 – A quiet performance from Redondo who did pitch in with the necessary dirty work while also stepping in to make interceptions and recoveries.
CM: Yannick Bright – 7/10 – Tidy in possession as he continues his development in his first season with the team. Bright has shown that he’s a solid squad player to keep around for the long haul that has plenty of potential.
LWB: Jordi Alba – 7/10 – It was a quiet showing from the veteran full-back but he picked up the pace in the second half to grab an assist to set up Suarez.
RW: Julian Gressel – 7/10 – The ex-Columbus Crew player’s movement was impressive down the right-hand side as he linked up well with his teammates in tight situations.
ST: Luis Suarez – 9/10 – Excellent leading the line for the Herons. His hold-up play was on point and his header led to the opening goal before he got on the scoresheet with a calm finish in the second half. Capped off his brace with a tap-in late on.
LW: Diego Gomez – 8/10 – Put in another shift out on the wing by setting up both of Miami’s goals. His ability to take on his defender and play teammates through on goal makes him such a versatile player in the Miami squad.
SUB: David Ruiz (72′ for Redondo) – 6/10 – Came on to solidify the middle of the park in the latter stages of the match.
SUB: Benjamin Cremaschi (72′ for Gressel) – 6/10 – Helped relieve pressure in the final third to slow things down.
SUB: Leo Campana (80′ for Suarez) – 7/10 – Grabbed an assist with a perfect through ball into Taylor’s path.
SUB: Robert Taylor (90′ for Gomez) – 7/10 – Reminded Miami fans that he’s still a valuable player in the squad with a stoppage-time strike.
Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino – 9/10 – Martino’s decision to stick with the 3-4-3 setup looks like a masterstroke for the second week in a row. Miami didn’t concede too many clear-cut chances — which hasn’t been the case for most of the season — while they were also ruthless in transition to kickstart counter-attacks.