Lionel Messi scored twice and set up another for Sergio Busquets as Inter Miami beat Nashville 3-1 on Saturday to move to the top of Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference.
Defender Franco Negri gave Miami early trouble when he headed Daniel Lowitz’s corner into his own net in the second minute of the game at Chase Stadium.
Gerardo Martino’s side have failed to keep a clean sheet in each of their last 11 games and it could have been worse when Josh Bauer fired home three minutes later.
But Messi soon leveled Miami – a smart shot from Diego Gomez saw Argentina cleared by Nashville goalkeeper Elliott Panicco, but after Luis Suarez headed the loose ball home, Messi headed home 1-. 1 in the 11th minute.
Two minutes later, Messi took advantage of Nashville’s play, but his right-footed shot went off the post.
All Miami could create was a Messi shot shortly before Panicco whipped in a cross for Gomez’s header to be saved by his feet.
Six minutes before the break, Messi’s former Barcelona teammate Busquets found the back of the net for the first time in MLS, meeting the World Cup winner’s corner at the near post.
There was a blow for the home side before the break, when Paraguayan international Gomez suffered an ankle injury, the latest in a string of injuries for Miami.
He was replaced by the young Brazilian Leonardo Afonso, but his effort was ruled out for offside.
Nashville came out strong after the break, but despite dominating 20 minutes of the half, they had little to show for their efforts apart from German Hany Mukhtar’s effort from long range.
