Fort Lauderdale (USA), Aug 17 : Late goals from captain Lionel Messi and forward Luis Suarez led Inter Miami CF to earn a thrilling 3-1 victory at Chase Stadium against the LA Galaxy.

Defender Jordi Alba opened the scoreline before late goals from Messi and forward Suarez allowed the team to record its first-ever victory over the reigning MLS Cup champions.

Inter Miami started the match applying pressure to the visitors through several combinations between Picault, Allende, Suárez, and Segovia. The latter came close to opening the scoreline after a great collective play was finished off by the Venezuelan from a backheel cross from Suarez. The goal, though, was overruled due to an offside position from Segovia in the play's build up, Inter Miami reports.

Nearing the end of the first half, a precise line-breaking ball by Busquets found Alba, who cut through the Galaxy's defense. The defender found himself at the edge of the six-yard box and clinically placed the ball to the goalkeeper's first post to give Inter Miami the lead into the break.

The second half saw the introduction of Argentine duo Messi and Rodrigo de Paul.

The Galaxy then equalized in the 59th minute through a goal from Joseph Paintsil.

Inter Miami continued generating chances during the second half. In the 84th minute, de Paul played an unmarked Messi right outside the box, who dribbled past a defender and slotted a grazing left-footed shot to reclaim the lead.

Remarkably, the goal saw Messi become the second-fastest player in MLS history to reach 40 career goals, doing so in just 44 matches (Josef Martínez, 42).

Suarez rounded out the result for the definitive 3-1 scoreline in the 89th minute with a close range shot from inside the box following an elite backheel delivery from Messi from the 18-yard box.

Notably, with the goal Suarez took his tally to 6 this regular season. The assist, meanwhile, was the 10th for Messi in MLS play in 2025.

/IANS