Player Ratings: Inter Miami Continues Good Run of Form with 2-1 Win Over New England
Messi makes history again.
photo credit: Inter Miami CF
Inter Miami picked up its fifth straight win in MLS competition with a 2-1 victory over the New England Revolution.
After a solid thrashing of CF Montreal a few days earlier, the Herons continued their winning ways, picking up a much-needed three points against a determined Revs side.
The Men in Pink got on the scoreboard relatively early, with Lionel Messi putting the Javier Mascherano-led side up 1-0 within 30 minutes.
The World Cup winner then furthered Miami’s lead just 10 minutes later, netting his fourth straight brace in MLS competition.
With a match-up against a tough Nashville SC team coming up on Saturday, the win against New England was imperative to keep momentum going.
Here are Player Ratings from Inter Miami's win vs. the New England Revs.
*I’ll rate every player on a scale of 1 to 10, with 5-6 being average/below average. For the substitutes, I’ll judge accordingly.*
Goalkeeping:
🧤 Oscar Ustari - 7.9: Had several crucial saves that kept Miami in the game and prevented New England from scoring.
Defense:
💨 Jordi Alba - 7.5: Didn’t do an awful lot to change the trajectory of the game, but his veteran presence is always needed on the field.
🦅 Maxi Falcon - 7.8: Did well to wrangle ex-Miami forward Leo Campana.
🦒 Tomas Avilés - 7.2: Like his center-back partner, he did well to stymie New England’s attack.
🎻 Marcelo Weigandt - 7: Had a solid game getting forward, but had a few times when he was beaten in behind.
Midfield:
🧉Tadeo Allende - 7.1: Not on his usual self this match (getting in behind, using physicality to beat his defender). But, he did well to open up space for his teammates.
🐞 Federico Redondo - 7: Progressed the ball well, but still got beaten multiple times defensively.
🧮 Sergio Busquets - 8: Provided the perfect assist to Messi’s second goal.
🧙 Baltasar Rodriguez - 7.4: Would like to see him get more playing time. He’s essentially a second attacking midfielder on the field alongside Messi. Rodriguez’s positioning could help keep the World Cup winner on in Miami’s attacking third, rather than dropping deep.
Attack:
🔫 Luis Suárez - 7.2: Was extremely effective in holding up the ball with his back to goal. Though he didn’t score, his off-the-ball movement is still invaluable to Miami.
🐐 Lionel Messi - 9: “HE CAN’T KEEP GETTING AWAY WITH THIS…'“
Substitutes:
💣 Telasco Segovia - 6.7: Had some nifty moves that were pleasant to see. Also did a good job getting into the final third to keep up pressure on New England.
💪 Benjamin Cremaschi - 7: Hustled well when the Revs were pushing to get the equalizer.
🇵🇾 David Martinez - N/A: Didn’t play long enough to warrant a rating.
Coaching:
🔢 Javier Mascherano - 7.5: This game was pretty much all Messi magic. However, I do want to give Mascherano props for figuring out what works offensively for this team. It’s less of a normal 4-4-2 now, and more so a fluid 4-2-2-2 that sees Messi free roam. I’m interested to see how it continues to evolve over the season.
Thoughts on the match? Let me know in the comments.