Inter Miami boss Javier Mascherano has made a surprise claim after Lionel Messi and the Herons endured a shocking 4-1 loss to Minnesota United. They had travelled to the Allianz Field on Saturday (May 10), only to pick up their fourth loss in five games.
Although Lionel Messi scored in the early part of the second half, the Herons could not recover from a two-goal deficit as they conceded two more in rapid succession. Inter Miami head coach Javier Mascherano acknowledged the vulnerabilities of his team in his press conference afterwards. He said (via GOAL):
The Herons did not travel with striker Luis Suarez owing to personal circumstances, and this compelled Mascherano to modify his tactics. The head coach explained that there were further changes that had to be made due to Fafa Picault suffering a migraine:
He continued:
Lionel Messi and Inter Miami will hope to regroup as they approach their next game against the San Jose Earthquakes this midweek (May 14, EST). They will need to shore up their defense and return to winning ways.
It was a troubling day for Inter Miami, as they fell hard against Minnesota United, who hosted the match at the Allianz Field. The Herons conceded two goals in the first half, with Bongokuhle Hlongwane opening the scoring for Minnesota in the 32nd minute.
On the cusp of half-time (45+2′), Anthony Markanich scored their second goal to put the hosts in the driving seat. In the second half, Lionel Messi shone, as he combined well with Jordi Alba to halve the deficit for the Herons (48′). However, he could do little else, as Miami’s defense struggled to hold off their hosts.
An own goal from Marcelo Weigandt in the 68th minute worsened things for the visitors. Two minutes later, Robin Lod shut down any hopes of a comeback with the fourth goal. Regardless of Messi’s efforts, which included his 44th goal for the club, the Herons’ poor performance has left them in fourth on the Eastern Conference table.
Nnanna’s favorite club is English team Bolton Wanderers because he witnessed Nigeria legend Jay-Jay Okocha’s play for them between 2002 and 2006. His favorite footballer is Ronaldinho due to the Brazilian’s love for the sport and admires Pep Guardiola for redefining football tactics. As a former literature student, Nnanna reckons that the best way of connecting with the readers is to add a bit of empathy in his writing, and relies on trusted websites like Transfermarkt and WhoScored for his articles.
Lionel Messi lifting the World Cup trophy in 2022 is Nnanna’s favorite FIFA World Cup moment, and also follows Major League Soccer due to the diminutive Argentine. He strongly believes that Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland could be the next two superstars in the same light as legendary pair Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
When not writing, he likes to play Football Manager and other simulation games.
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