Another Inter Miami match, another hat-trick by an Argentinian No 10. Just not the one you expected.
Martín Ojeda put on a masterclass on Sunday and led Orlando City to a shocking 4-3 defeat of Miami that saw the Lions become just the third team in MLS’s 30-year history to win after trailing 3-0. As Ojeda raised his arms in triumph at the final whistle, Lionel Messi – who scored a wonder goal of his own and added two assists – headed straight for the locker room.
Miami are winless in four games since christening Nu Stadium in April, but Saturday’s loss carried extra weight, coming at the hands of their in-state rivals and one of one of MLS’s poorest sides. And while there’s plenty of blame to spread around in Miami’s camp, defenders Maxi Falcón and Micael put in atrocious performances against Orlando. Miami actually continued to threaten offensively until the final whistle but their defensive ineptitude comes as no surprise to anyone who has watched them in 2026, or last year for that matter.
Miami’s attempts at bolstering an already iffy backline – one that has suffered greatly from the loss of Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets this offseason – involved bringing in defending MLS goalkeeper of the year Dayne St Clair, along with defenders Micael and Sergio Reguilón. The adds clearly haven’t worked; Miami have given up twice as many goals at this point in the season as they had in 2025. They continue to struggle in defensive transition. And with a midfield laboring despite the presence of Rodrigo De Paul, giveaways are as common as they are dangerous. Only an in-form Messi and a handful of other standouts have kept Miami – who are third in the Eastern Conference – in decent shape.
Who, then, will face the music? Inter Miami are already on their second manager of the season, after Javier Mascherano’s surprise resignation along with most of his coaching staff. Guillermo Hoyos, Messi’s “football father” and formerly Miami’s sporting director, is now head coach but took only one question from the media on Saturday, delivering a single, terse answer before leaving the room.
As for players, neither Falcón nor Micael – nor any one of Miami’s galaxy of stars – had to answer for their performance to the media. This is run-of-the-mill stuff at Miami, who have shirked the league’s media and open locker room policies for years. More recently they appear to have taken that approach to new heights, refusing match credentials to some longtime local media since moving to Nu Stadium.
Left to carry the load, then, was Miami defender Noah Allen. Allen, along with fellow fullback Ian Fray, were at least serviceable on Saturday, with Fray scoring Miami’s opener. Allen, who is often left to address the media on behalf of his teammates, was asked on Saturday whether it’s been tough to fill that role every week in place of more senior players. In a world where players are more often than not polished and professional to the point of tedium, Allen’s answer was open and honest.
“Yes,” Allen said. “I’m not going to lie.”
We’ll have to see if Miami keep marching him up there.
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Frustration boils over
The Philadelphia Union’s 0-0 draw against Nashville SC would have been forgettable, but for one notable moment.
About 68 minutes in – and with the Union stretched defensively – head coach Bradley Carnell pulled 16-year-old Cavan Sullivan. Sullivan, who was starting just his third league match of the year, was unhappy. We know this because one could read Sullivan’s lips as he jogged off the field: “Fucking bullshit, motherfucker.”
Aside from the Union’s run in the Concacaf Champions Cup, Sullivan has largely been left out of Carnell’s plans, at least as a starter. It’s been a head-scratching decision at times, with the Union circling the drain in the Eastern Conference, in need of some creativity up top that Sullivan could provide. It’s led some to question whether Sullivan’s growth is being stunted by the Union ahead of a potentially life-altering transfer – he has a clause in his contract that will see him move to Manchester City when he turns 18, or potentially earlier to one of their sister clubs.
It’s also fair to ask what anybody is supposed to expect from Sullivan, who was even younger than MLS’s other notable phenom, Freddy Adu, when he made his first team debut in 2024.
Carnell praised Sullivan’s performance after the match and pinned the substitution on a tactical shift.
“You know, the front four, they invest so much for us and there were a couple of plays at the end there where [Nashville] brings on [Andy] Najar, especially down that side,” Carnell said. “That’s why we had to get [Agustín Anello] on just from a physicality point of view, just to do the recoveries as well. So, you know, definitely not performance related because he did really well.”
Carnell’s remarks aside, outbursts like Sullivan’s are never helpful and may run counter to the general assessment of Sullivan, or at least the one that existed when the Union announced he’d be headed to Manchester City in the first place. Back then, decision-makers at the Union spoke of his maturity and professionalism. Saturday’s outburst doesn’t mean that assessment is wrong, though – rather, we just saw a different side of Sullivan, though many in attendance probably understood his frustration.
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San Diego standoff goes aerial
The borderline telenovela between San Diego FC and Chucky Lozano has reached brand new heights. Altitudes, even.
Lozano has been excluded from San Diego’s plans this year and has been training away from the team, having recently posted something akin to an “everybody hurts” video of himself wandering around San Diego’s training facility alone. The club’s head coach, Mikey Varas, gave an almost hilariously curt answer last week when asked if Lozano – who is making $7.4m a year – coulc return to the team, offering the following: “No chance.”
Yet San Diego’s pitiful start to the season has fans clamoring for his return, with some supporters chanting Lozano’s name during matches. Just before Saturday’s match against LAFC, a plane appeared overhead towing a banner with a message for Varas, or anybody who would listen: “FREE CHUCKY = MORE WINS.”
San Diego actually looked decent against Los Angeles and very nearly won, undone deep into second-half stoppage time by a controversial Ryan Hollingshead strike.
Something tells me we won’t be seeing Lozano anytime soon, airborne pleas be damned.
