FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Lionel Messi's first-half brace propelled Inter Miami to a 4-0 victory over Nashville SC at Chase Stadium on Saturday to advance in the MLS playoffs for the first time in club history.
Tadeo Allende wrapped up the win with a quickfire double of his own late in the second half, with Messi providing the assist for the second.
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With the win, Miami clinched the Round One best-of-three game series 2-1 to progress to the Eastern Conference semifinals and a meeting with No. 2 seed FC Cincinnati.
Inter Miami entered the game at a disadvantage without Luis Suárez, who watched from the sidelines after receiving a one-game suspension from the MLS disciplinary committee for violent conduct in the second match of the series last week.
Despite the absence of the veteran striker, Inter Miami earned the early lead in the 10th minute after Messi took possession of the ball in the final third and fired a shot into the lower right corner of the goal.
Messi then doubled the score late in the second half with the help of Mateo Silvetti, the player head coach Javier Mascherano chose to replace Suárez in the starting 11.
Miami continued to dominate as the game progressed, inspiring Allende to score two goals in the span of five minutes to clinch the ticket to the next round of the playoffs.
Despite Nashville's 11 shots throughout the match, goalkeeper Rocco Ríos Novo kept the team's first clean sheet of the 2025 postseason.
Miami, the No. 3 seed in the East, now prepares to face FC Cincinnati at TQL Stadium in Ohio for the one-match Eastern Conference semifinal. Inter Miami
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