Lionel Messi‘s goal provides a Minnesota soccer moment in a Minnesota United rout of Inter Miami CF

You might never again see so many people at Allianz Field wearing the opposition’s jersey, with scores of fans clad in “MESSI 10” jerseys in the pink of Inter Miami or the blue and white stripes of Argentina.

Maybe everybody went home happy, in the end: Lionel Messi scored, but Minnesota pounded the visitors 4-1 Saturday at Allianz Field.

It’ll go down as one of the best afternoons in Minnesota soccer history. Bongokuhle Hlongwane and Anthony Markanich scored first-half goals for Minnesota, with Robin Lod — and an ugly Miami own goal — clinching the game in the second half.

Messi’s lone reply came three minutes after halftime, leading to a nervous quarter of the match for the Loons supporters. The own goal and Lod‘s long-range blast came just three minutes apart, though, in the 68th and 70th minutes, starting the party in the Allianz Field crowd — except, perhaps, among the fans in pink.

“It’s obviously a phenomenal day for the club, and I’m really pleased we were able to show the club in its best light,” Loons manager Eric Ramsay said. “I think everyone would have woken up this morning hoping that that was the case — and it’s probably one of those rare occasions where it does pan out exactly as we want it to.”

It’s rare that a mid-May regular-season game can end up being a signature win in club history, but this one qualifies for Minnesota. There’s no brighter regular-season spotlight than a visit from the star-studded Miami squad, on a beautiful Saturday afternoon in St. Paul, so for Minnesota to pull off a comprehensive win was just about everything the club could have hoped for. And it helped that the team did it in such classic Loons style, with a solid defensive performance and a winning goal from a set piece.

It’s also worth remembering that Miami came to the game third in MLS in points per game, which makes the Herons one of the best teams that the Loons have ever beaten in St. Paul.

“It was a nice win, and it was nice to see the crowd living every every moment,” Lod said.

The stats will say that Hlongwane’s goal came from a pass from Carlos Harvey, but Joaquín Pereyra’s possession created the goal. Pereyra, dribbling near the Loons sideline, cut toward the end line and then back toward midfield with the ball, and drew four Miami defenders out with him in the process. When Pereyra slipped them and found Harvey, the Loons center back had a ton of space to turn and find Hlongwane, dashing in behind the back line.

No team in MLS takes more throw-in opportunities into the penalty area than Minnesota. Coming into the game, the Loons had more than double the number of “throw-in crosses” as the second-place team in MLS, Vancouver.

MATCH SUMMARY: Minnesota United FC 4, Inter Miami CF 1

The numbers say it’s just a smart play, to get the ball into the area from a throw-in, and Minnesota’s second goal backed that up. Michael Boxall whipped in a long throw from even with the penalty spot, Nicolás Romero headed the ball on at the near post, and Markanich was all alone at the back post to turn home a header and double the Loons’ lead.

This week is Minnesota’s first two-game week of the MLS calendar this season, as they travel to Houston midweek and play St. Louis at home next Saturday. These games might not be marquee games on the schedule like Miami, but picking up points in two Western Conference matchups would go a long way toward booking some more marquee games in the playoffs this fall.