Inter Miami without Messi suffered the biggest defeat in its history

Last night in MLS, a showdown took place between the top two teams in the Eastern Conference. League leaders Inter Miami traveled to face their closest pursuers, FC Cincinnati.

Inter Miami's star player Lionel Messi was unavailable due to his call-up for Copa America, as was fellow forward Luis Suárez. The only former Barcelona player on the field for Inter Miami was Sergio Busquets.

The match began energetically, and by the tenth minute, Yuya Kubo had opened the scoring, putting the hosts ahead. Their joy was short-lived, however, as Inter Miami defender Serhiy Kryvtsov soon equalized. But the good news for the visitors ended there.

Before halftime, Luciano Acosta, Pavel Bucha, and Yamil Asad each scored, making the score 4-1.

In the second half, the onslaught continued, with Kubo scoring his second goal of the match. Following this, Busquets committed a foul and received a yellow card. He then approached the referee to express his dissatisfaction and was shown a second yellow card, resulting in his dismissal.

Towards the end, Gerardo Valenzuela added one final goal, setting the final score.

MLS
FC Cincinnati 6-1 Inter Miami
Goals: Kubo 10', 57', Acosta 36', Bucha 38', Asad 45+4', Valenzuela 72' – Kryvtsov 21'

This defeat marks the heaviest loss for Inter Miami outside of friendly matches. The team has conceded six goals on two other occasions: in a friendly against Al-Nassr in February this year and last summer against Barcelona. Inter Miami's only previous five-goal defeat in MLS was in 2021 when they were thrashed away by New England Revolution.

Thanks to this victory, FC Cincinnati has overtaken Inter Miami at the top of the Eastern Conference standings. They have a game in hand and now lead the star-studded team by one point.