Colombian Luis Muriel, with a brace, was the star of Orlando City on Sunday in their 4-1 thrashing of Inter Miami, who played their second consecutive game without Lionel Messi due to a muscle injury. Argentine Martin Ojeda was also instrumental, scoring Orlando's third goal. Marco Pasalic put the icing on the cake.

Muriel came into this Florida MLS derby in excellent form after scoring a hat-trick in Orlando's 5-1 win over Necaxa in the Leagues Cup. Ojeda then sealed the other two goals.

Muriel wasted no time and put his team ahead in the second minute after an excellent pass from Ojeda, who opened up the centre of the visitors' defence for Muriel to beat Argentine Oscar Ustari.

Three minutes later, Inter Miami equalised through Yannick Bright, who pounced on a loose ball at the edge of the box and beat Peruvian Pedro Gallese with a great shot.

The match was thrilling, with multiple chances for both teams and also a dose of controversy. But in the second half, Orlando City, coached by Colombian Oscar Pareja, shook Inter Miami once again.

Muriel popped up again in the 50th minute. During a rehearsed corner, the striker received the ball at the near post, turned beautifully on an overconfident Jordi Alba and sent the ball into the net.

It was a great spell for the home side and Ojeda made it 3-1 in the 58th minute. Ustari, who had made several impressive saves throughout the night, clearly failed to save his compatriot's shot.

At the other end, Gallese produced one of the most spectacular saves of the evening in the 67th minute, tipping a fabulous shot from Luis Suarez over the bar. But Orlando City kept pushing forward and in the 89th minute, Pasalic rounded off the scoring.

This heavy defeat leaves the team led by Argentine Javier Mascherano sixth in the Eastern Conference with 42 points from 23 games. Philadelphia Union leads the conference with 51 points from 26 games.

Meanwhile, Orlando City, which had already beaten the pink-clad team 0-3 in May, overtook Inter Miami and is now fourth in the East with 44 points in 26 games.

Also played in the MLS on Sunday were the New York Red Bulls' 2-1 win over Real Salt Lake, Charlotte's surprising 0-1 win over Cincinnati, and the Colorado Rapids' equally unexpected 1-2 victory over Minnesota United.

M. Ojeda

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