Inter Miami found a way to win without Lionel Messi on Wednesday, riding a two-goal performance from Luis Suarez and a late winner from teenager Preston Plambeck to edge Chicago Fire 3-2, dampening what was supposed to be a milestone night for Robert Lewandowski’s Major League Soccer debut.
Miami took the field missing both Messi and Rodrigo de Paul, just four days removed from Argentina’s 1-0 defeat to Spain in the World Cup final. With his captain absent, Suarez wore the armband and delivered a performance that made the difference, while Lewandowski, fresh off signing from newly crowned Spanish champions Barcelona, started for Chicago and played 63 minutes in his first taste of MLS action.
The Polish striker did not shy away from acknowledging the rough edges in his first outing. Speaking afterward, Lewandowski said he had not expected everything to click after only two days with his new team, adding that he needs more time to settle in and expressing confidence that defensive improvements would lead to better results in future matches.
The game’s opening goal came in unusual fashion. After Lewandowski saw an early attempt blocked in the 14th minute, Chicago capitalized on a defensive mishap four minutes later when Miami goalkeeper Rocco Rios Novo, deputizing for Canada World Cup keeper Dayne St. Clair, mishit a routine backpass from Ian Fray, watching helplessly as the ball trickled into his own net.
Suarez responded before halftime, converting from the penalty spot in the 27th minute to level the score, then put Miami ahead just after the break with a clinical finish in the 51st minute, set up by a slick backheel from German Berterame. Chicago’s Puso Dithejane pulled things level again in the 67th minute, setting the stage for a tense finish.
That finish belonged to Plambeck, a 20-year-old product of Miami’s own youth academy, who came off the bench to snatch the winner in the 87th minute. His moment arrived after goalkeeper Chris Brady parried a close-range effort from Suarez, leaving Plambeck to volley home the rebound for his first goal in Miami colors.
The win lifted Inter Miami to second place in the Eastern Conference with 34 points, five behind leaders Nashville. Coach Guillermo Hoyos made clear afterward that there was no urgency in rushing Messi and De Paul back into action, acknowledging the physical and mental toll of a World Cup campaign and saying the club would wait until both players were fully ready to return.
