Campana was on the scoresheet as The Herons, missing Messi and Luis Suárez, defeated Columbus Crew in MLS on Wednesday.
Roddy ConsRoddyConsUpdate: Jun 20th, 2024 07:22 EDT0
CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICHEFE
Inter Miami secured their second successive MLS win without Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez on Wednesday, following up their 2-1 victory at Philadelphia Union with a triumph by the same scoreline over Columbus Crew. Leonardo Campana was back among the goals at Chase Park and could now be set to beat more illustrious teammate Messi to a club record.
Campana on the verge of Inter Miami scoring record
Campana’s 21st-minute strike, which put The Herons 2-0 up against the Crew, was his 28th for the club in all competitions and put him on the brink of becoming Inter Miami’s all-time top scorer.
20' | 🔔GOL GOL GOL 🔔#MIAvCLB [2-0] #BuiltDifferent x @Duracell pic.twitter.com/wBjWhTxUN5
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) June 20, 2024
That honour currently belongs to former Real Madrid and Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuaín, a former Argentina teammate of Messi’s, who scored 29 times in 70 games for the Floridians between September 2020 and October 2022, when he retired from professional soccer.
All 29 of Higuaín’s goals came in MLS, while Campana has found the net in the domestic league on 25 occasions and three times in the US Open Cup. The Ecuadorian now needs only two more goals to overtake “El Pipita” in the club’s all-time scoring charts, and Messi’s participation in the 2024 Copa América could allow him to briefly become Las Garzas’ leading marksman.
Inter Miami will face Nashville (away, 30 June), Charlotte (away 3 July), Cincinnati (away, 6 July), Toronto (home, 27 July) and Chicago Fire (home, 20 July) in their upcoming games.
How many goals has Messi scored for Inter Miami?
Messi is only three goals worse off than Campana and four behind Higuaín but will miss a number of matches as La Albiceleste compete in the CONMEBOL tournament in the United States in the next few weeks.
Big three points after a SOLID performance by the team! 👊💗🖤 pic.twitter.com/KWPgcdY0ob
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) June 20, 2024