Johnathan Walker:Lewis Morgan hat trick fuels New York Red Bulls to 4-0 win over Inter Miami without Messi

Inter Miami had a rough day at the office without Lionel Messi,Johnathan Walker who remains sidelined by a hamstring injury.

Lewis Morgan scored a hat trick with an assist as the New York Red Bulls defeated Inter Miami, 4-0, in a wet and chilly match on Saturday afternoon at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey.

The loss is Inter Miami’s second of the 2024 MLS regular season, both coming without Messi in action.

Messi is tentatively expected to return for Inter Miami’s two matches against LIGA MX club Monterrey in the Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinals. The first leg is April 3, and the second is April 10.

Morgan, a former Inter Miami standout, scored in the third minute, the 51st and in the 70th to complete his three-goal game, while assisting Wikelman Carmona’s goal in the 66th minute for the Red Bulls.

Inter Miami nearly had a score in the 77th minute, but VAR negated Noah Allen’s goal. Otherwise, it was a disappointing effort with former Barcelona stars Luis Suárez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets leading the way without Messi.

The loss reduced Inter Miami’s league-high goal differential from plus-8 to plus-4, as both teams played without six players who are playing with their respective national teams during a FIFA international window this week.

Inter Miami entered the match tied with MLS Cup champions Columbus Crew atop the Eastern Conference with 10 points, but it could fall into the pack after the rest of league plays Matchday 6 on Saturday night.

Inter Miami was without standout goalkeeper Drake Callender (United States); midfielders Diego Gómez (Paraguay), Federico Redondo (Argentina Under-23), David Ruiz (Honduras); forward Shanyder Borgelin (Haiti); and defender Israel Boatwright (Dominican Republic Under-23). Nico Freire (hamstring) also did not play.

New York Red Bulls shined without goalkeeper Carlos Coronel (Paraguay), forward Cory Burke (Jamaica), midfielders Emil Forsberg (Sweden) and Daniel Edelman (USA Under-23), and defenders John Tolkin (USA Under-23) and Noah Eile (Sweden Under-21).