LEAGUES CUP
Campana equals Higuaín as Inter Miami’s top scorer
The Ecuadorian striker made history with Las Garzas in last night’s game against Tigres and will soon surpass the Argentinean former striker.
Despite losing the final group game of the 2024 Leagues Cup, Inter Miami witnessed a historic event when Leonardo Campana converted a 74th minute penalty in the 2-1 defeat to Tigres in Texas.
It brought up his 29th goal for the franchise, enabling the Ecuadorian forward to pull level with Gonzalo Higuaín as the team’s joint top scorers of all-time. Now he plans to own the record outright.
Campana’s first Leagues Cup goal
Curiously, not only was it Campana’s first goal in this edition of the Leagues Cup, it was also his first ever goal in the competition. Inter Miami lifted the trophy last year with Campana appearing in all eight of the team’s games, including the final. And while he provided an assist for Lionel Messi in the 4-0 quarter final win against Charlotte, he didn’t manage to score himself.
A quick breakdown of Campana’s 29 goals for Inter Miami tell us that he has got off the mark in three competitions: MLS (25), US Open Cup (3) and Leagues Cup (1). The only tournament where he has yet to score is the CONCACAF Champions Cup, although to be fair, he only made a brief, four-minute appearance against Nashville in the last edition.
It took Higuaín two years to became the Herons’ all-time top scorer. His debut goal came against New York Red Bulls in October 2020 and his last goal for the franchise, in the Clásico del Sol against Orlando City almost exactly two years to the day later.
El Pipita took 70 games to reach 29 goals while Campana has equalled the Agentine’s record in 89 appearances. However, there is another player who could overtake them both...
Inter Miami all-time top goal scorers
- 29 Gonzalo Higuaín
- 29 Leonardo Campana
- 25 Lionel Messi
- 16 Robert Taylor
- 15 Luis Suárez
- 12 Josef Martínez
- 7 Lewis Morgan
- 7 Robbie Robertson
- 7 Rodolfo Pizarro
- 6 Jordi Alba
- 6 Ariel Lassiter
- 6 Brek Shea
- 6 Benjamin Cremaschi
*As of 4 August 2024
Messi just behind Higuain and Campana
Messi, on 25 goals is not far behind Campana and Higuaín. And he has spent less time at the South Florida club. He has scored his 25 goals in just 29 games, giving him a goal-to-game ratio of 0.86.
Campana must be aware that when the team captain returns from injury, his goals record will soon be in jeopardy. Messi has been out injured with a ligament problem for the past 19 days. He has missed the last seven MLS games and has not taken part in the Leagues Cup campaign.
Inter Miami conclude the group stage as runners-up in East 3 and await their rivals in the Round of 32.