A flick-on from Sergio Busquets put the ball on a platter for Jordi Alba, who drilled home his fiery effort for the Heron's second goal of the game.

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Inter Miami lose to CF MTL 3-2Alba scores stunning goalMessi missed match to injuryWHAT HAPPENED?

In the span of nine minutes, CF MTL and the Herons traded goals back and forth four different times, with the last coming off the boot of the Inter Miami defender. The Spaniard drilled home his fantastic effort into the top corner of the net to give them some late momentum, but it proved to be too little too late in a 3-2 loss.

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Their result Sunday evening marked their first loss across all competitions in 2024, and it came with a rotated XI due to fixture congestion with the CONCACAF Champions Cup. The Herons clashed last Thursday with Nashville SC in leg one of their series, which they drew 2-2, and with such a short turnaround period Tata Martino's hand was forced.

Alba's strike was the highlight of the day for Inter Miami, and it was Sergio Busquets's second-straight game with an assist in the 80th minute or later.

GettyWHAT NEXT FOR INTER MIAMI?

It's leg two of the series with Nashville SC in the CONCACAF Champions Cup on Wednesday. With Messi being rested on Sunday, there's hope that by doing so he will be fit and eligible to play midweek in the clash. The Herons do, however, have an advantage heading into the tie and it's the two away goals they accumulated in leg one.