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FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida

LIONEL MESSI, the man many rate as the world's top player, was absent for Inter Miami last night but the MLS team was still too strong for Jamaica's Cavalier FC and eased to a 2-0 advantage in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup round-of-16 match at the Chase Stadium in Florida.

Goals from Tadeo Allende (61st minute) and Luis Suarez (83rd) decided the match but the hosts were dominant throughput. They had 69 per cent of the possession, took 12 shots with five on target to Cavalier's five with one on target and had eight corners to Cavalier's three.

Cavalier's head coach Rudolph Speid was still upbeat with the second leg to be played at the National Stadium next Thursday.

"I thought even after we went down, we came back very well. Then again, maybe Inter Miami took their foot off the gas. However , I'm just happy that the team was able to give a good account of itself. We haven't given up and we are going back to Jamaica to rest.

With the focus now on the final leg, Speid said the players will be motivated.

"Let them moan and feel rejected for a while. It usually helps. And we will give them the day off. I can assure you that they will be motivated for the second leg. This was a missed chance for them to do something extraordinary. It didn't happen today. There's still a chance coming up next week Thursday," the Cavalier head coach said.

The match, watched by 15,413 fans, was a very exciting encounter throughout.

With Messi out, the overwhelming favourites Inter Miami were not able to take full advantage of their dominance. In fact in the early minutes they struggled to make any real shot attempt at goal as Cavalier defended stoutly. Then Cavalier's Shaquille Stein produced a moment of brilliance on the stroke of half-time and put the ball in the back of the net but no goal was awarded as a player was offside in the build-up.

In the second half Inter Miami came out fully energised and controlled the pace of the game. In the 61st minute Allende scored from the edge of the box. His shot going through a wall of players. In the 83rd minute Suarez placed a shot from just inside the box to the far post to complete the scoring.