FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) \u2014 The Chicago Fire jumped out to an early two-goal lead and withstood a furious second-half comeback try led by Luis Su\u00e1rez in a 5-3 win over Inter Miami on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the victory, Chicago (15-6-11) secured its first playoff berth since 2017 and improved to eighth in the Eastern Conference MLS standings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lionel Messi was held scoreless for the second straight game as Inter Miami, which has already clinched a playoff spot, slipped to 16-8-7. The loss hurt Inter Miami\u2019s hopes of winning the Supporters\u2019 Shield. The Philadelphia Union can secure the regular-season title with a win over New York City FC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis defeat is exclusively my responsibility. It wasn\u2019t the names (the players), it was the strategy I chose,\u201d Inter Miami head coach Javier Mascherano said after the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Fire seized the lead early as Dje D\u2019Avilla opened the scoring with a header in the 11th minute and Jonathan Dean scored on a breakaway in the 31st.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Miami cut the deficit to 2-1 when Tom\u00e1s Avil\u00e9s scored at the 39-minute mark, but Chicago’s Romingue Kouam\u00e9 restored the two-goal advantage just before halftime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Su\u00e1rez pulled Inter Miami within one with a goal in the 57th minute and the Uruguayan tied the game 3-all when he scored off an assist from Jordi Alba in the 74th.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Justin Reynolds\u2019 tap in at the back post in the 80th minute put Chicago back in front 4-3, and Brian Gutierrez added an insurance goal on a hard shot from just outside the box in the 83rd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The game was originally scheduled for August 30, but was postponed when Inter made the Leagues Cup Final, where they\u00a0lost to Seattle 3-0.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Miami made five changes to the lineup used in a 1-1 tie with Toronto on Saturday, including replacing all defenders, except Jordi Alba. Inter Miami had its three-game MLS winning streak halted with the\u00a0tie against Toronto.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"