Inter Miami CF came through one of the wildest Major League Soccer fixtures of the season on Wednesday night, beating FC Cincinnati 5-3 at TQL Stadium after an end-to-end contest packed with momentum swings, sharp finishing and a familiar Lionel Messi masterclass.
Messi opened the scoring in the 24th minute, then added further goals in the 55th and 89th minutes to complete a hat trick and drag Miami over the line. But this was far from straightforward for the visitors, who were pushed hard by a Cincinnati side that responded repeatedly through Kévin Denkey’s 41st-minute penalty, Pavel Bucha’s goal in the 49th minute and Evander’s strike in the 64th minute.
The first half had a little bit of everything. Miami settled well and looked the more threatening side, eventually turning that pressure into the opening goal when Messi found the breakthrough in the 24th minute. Cincinnati, though, refused to let the match drift away. After Miami picked up a pair of bookings late in the half, Denkey stepped up and converted from the spot in the 41st minute to make it 1-1 at the interval.
If the opening period hinted at chaos, the second half delivered it in full. Cincinnati struck first after the restart when Bucha finished in the 49th minute to put the hosts 2-1 ahead and briefly ignite TQL Stadium. Miami answered quickly, and inevitably, through Messi in the 55th minute, restoring parity before the contest tilted yet again.
Evander then fired Cincinnati back in front in the 64th minute, capping another dangerous attacking phase from the home side. At 3-2, Cincinnati had real belief, but Miami’s attacking depth and quality in the final third ultimately proved too much.
The turning point came in the final quarter-hour, when Miami found another gear. Mateo Silvetti leveled the match in the 79th minute, silencing the home crowd and shifting the momentum decisively toward the visitors. Germán Berterame then struck in the 84th minute to give Miami the lead for the first time since early in the second half, and Messi completed the job with his third goal in the 89th minute, putting a glossy finish on a breathless away performance.
By full time, the numbers underlined Miami’s edge. The visitors held 53.7 percent possession, won eight corners to Cincinnati’s one, and produced 17 total shots with six on target. Cincinnati were clinical in stretches and made the most of their openings, but with only three shots on target all night, they eventually could not keep pace once Miami’s attack started flowing late on.
For Cincinnati, there were still positives in attack. Denkey’s penalty in the 41st minute, Bucha’s finish in the 49th minute and Evander’s goal in the 64th minute showed they had the quality to hurt one of the league’s strongest forward lines. But defensively, containing Messi and company over 90 minutes was always going to be a daunting task, and the late collapse will sting.
For Inter Miami, this was a statement road win built on resilience as much as brilliance. Messi will take the headlines with his hat trick at 24′, 55′ and 89′, but Miami also showed composure to recover from trailing twice in the second half before overwhelming Cincinnati down the stretch. In a fixture that felt open from the first whistle to the last, the visitors found the decisive moments and took all three points.
