Lionel Messi-less Inter Miami Crushed 5-2 By Atlanta United

Lionel Messi had not made the trip to Atlanta, after a busy run of games since making his Miami debut in late July.

Inter  Miami rested Lionel Messi and suffered their first defeat since the Argentine joined the club, with a 5-2 hammering at Atlanta United damaging their playoff hopes on Saturday. Messi had not made the trip to Atlanta, after a busy run of games since making his Miami debut in late July. Miami coach Gerardo 'Tata' Martino said after the loss that Messi had been suffering from "muscle fatigue" and that it would have been "very reckless to bring him to play this game". The 36-year-old sat out Argentina's World Cup qualifier against Bolivia in La Paz on Tuesday but watched his team-mates from the bench.

With no Messi last week, Miami defeated Sporting Kansas City 3-2 but this time it was a very different story for Martino's team.

Miami went ahead in the 25th minute with a superbly taken goal from in-form striker Ecuadorean striker Leonardo Campana .

But the response from Atlanta, sixth in the Eastern Conference, was emphatic with three goals in the space of eight minutes.

A glancing header from French midfielder Tristan Muyamba, which struck the inside of the post, was ruled to have crossed the line by the assistant referee.