Yahoo Sports Messi scores, but sluggish Inter Miami loses 3-1 to Atlanta, ending 10-game unbeaten run
Inter Miami returned to its “A” lineup at home against Atlanta United Wednesday night with Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Sergio Busquets back in action after skipping the road game at Vancouver.
But the high-priced stars and their teammates wilted on a steamy, humid night and Miami’s 10-game unbeaten streak ended with a 3-1 loss to an Atlanta team that had gone winless the past nine games and played with more urgency as its coach Gonzalo Pineda is on the hot seat.
Inter Miami looked sluggish from the start, and Atlanta took advantage.
“There are no positives to take from this game,” said Miami coach Tata Martino about the match against his former team, whom he coached to the 2018 MLS Cup title. “We were missing a step against Atlanta, we took a step backward from how we had been playing, and that was totally unexpected. I saw no signs of fatigue in training on Monday or Tuesday. I don’t have to do a deep analysis of what went wrong because everything went wrong.”
Martino said Miami had everything in its favor, including the home field, and he was disappointed the team seemed disjointed, undisciplined, and slow to the ball. Atlanta employed a five-man back line, and Martino conceded that the formation caused trouble for Miami’s attackers. He also praised Atlanta midfielder Thiago Almada, the Argentine who returned to the lineup after missing the past few games with a calf injury.
“Atlanta’s position in the standings (11th place) is a bit deceiving, and they showed that against us,” Martino said. “When they have their best players on the field, such as Thiago Almada, they’re a completely different team.”
Saba Lobjanidze, the speedy Georgian, scored the first two goals for the visitors. The first came in transition just before halftime after an Atlanta midfielder intercepted a weak Busquets pass and Lobjanidze outraced Miami defenders and blasted a shot past goalkeeper Drake Callender from outside the box. The second was in the 59th minute, and once again, Lobjanidze had plenty of space to work with and found the back of the net.
Messi gave Miami fans at Chase Stadium reason to hope after a left-footed golazo from distance in the 62nd minute, but the Messi magic was not enough. Jamal Thiare made a shot from very close range 10 minutes later to widen the gap. The home crowd, known for its boundless energy, was subdued for the remainder of the game.
Callender looked irritated as the game wore on, and who could blame him? After three strong games from Miami’s back line, the defense looked porous against Atlanta, although Martino made a point to praise center back Sergiy Kryvtsov, who had one of his best games. Messi, Busquets and Suarez were playing for the first time in 10 days and seemed a bit out of sync.
Atlanta’s defense did a better job of containing Messi and Suarez than other opponents had.
“I think understanding that Messi and Suarez were going to be on top, I wanted to have always a three vs two against them,” Atlanta coach Pineda said. “The players did amazing in terms of those times. There were different difficult moments in the game where we didn’t read them or they were using balls in the buildup, but then we were always a good base of three players defending so that was also part of the why is because I wanted to be protected in the middle of the field in transition moments.”
Despite the loss, Miami still has the best record in Major League Soccer through 17 games, with 34 points from 10 wins, three losses and four ties. Cincinnati, which could have overtaken Miami in the Eastern Conference standings, also lost, 2-0 to Nashville, and remained in second place with 33 points.
Defensive midfielder Federico Redondo started for the first time since missing two months with a knee injury, and he, too, looked a bit winded. Winger Robert Taylor, who had a goal and an assist against Vancouver, also started.
Atlanta’s leading scorer Giorgos Giakoumakis, who has five goals, sat out the last game against Los Angeles FC because of a hamstring injury. He entered as a sub on Wednesday. Brad Guzan, Atlanta’s starting goalkeeper, is out serving a red card suspension.
Coming off the bench for Miami in the second half: Matias Rojas and Leo Campana (who scored the past two games).
Players who were not used: CJ Dos Santos, Ryan Sailor, Noah Allen, Franco Negri, David Ruiz, Leo Afonso and Benja Cremaschi, who Wednesday was invited to the U.S. Olympic team camp in June in preparation for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Asked why he only used two subs, and why Cremaschi and Ruiz were not used, Martino explained that the team needed attack-minded goal-scorers to catch up in the second half and he felt Campana and Rojas were better suited for that role than midfielders.
Cremaschi, the youngest player called into camp by U.S. coach Marko Mitrovic, missed the first seven games of the Inter Miami season following sports hernia surgery. Since his return he has played in eight games and scored two goals.
The Argentine American appeared in all four Men’s Olympic Team matches last fall, scoring the lone USA goal in a 1-1 tie with Iraq.
“Last year Benja made big, big steps with Inter Miami and he grew through our youth system, and he got the opportunity to play for MNT (men’s senior national team),” Mitrovic said. “He had a small setback at the beginning of this year with his injury, but we are happy he’s back and we could see his impact right away on the field. Benja is important for our roster, important for our team, and he is the youngest player on our roster, so we believe he has a bright future with our MNT one day.”
