All Lionel Messi needed was an open lane up the field to pass the ball to. Two quick passes later, Inter Miami had the ball in the back of the net. The fans at a packed Yankee Stadium roared after the best player in soccer, not baseball, had shone.
But most will likely go home remembering the last-minute goals and the thrilling ending.
New York City FC’s James Sands scored a header off a corner kick in the 95th minute to tie the game at 1-1 against Messi’s Inter Miami on Saturday afternoon. The Rye, New York native couldn’t have come at a better time to score in his 117th career game, as it was Sands’ first career goal.
The goal undid what could have been a 1-0 victory for Inter Miami, thanks to some brilliant play from Messi.
It wasn’t a big deal, but Messi received a pass from defender Federico Redondo about three-quarters of the way down the field, opening up passing lanes that had been congested for Inter Miami most of the afternoon.
Messi passed to Jordi Alba, who passed to the chasing Leo Campana who scored in the 75th minute, Campana’s franchise-leading 31st goal for Inter Miami, Messi next with 27 for the club.
Still, Inter Miami earned a point and opened up a 64-point lead in the Supporters’ Shield standings. Inter Miami needs to win at least three of their remaining four regular-season games to challenge the MLS record of 73 points in a season, set by New England Revolution in 2021.
Inter Miami coach Tata Martino criticized the refereeing team after the match, including what he believed was a missed call for a foul on midfielder Yannick Breit before the winning goal.
“I think we played well and should have won,” Martino said. “If the referee had called a foul on Yannick Breit, we would have won.”
The match was tense even before it started, with New York City Football Club fans arriving at the stadium and swarming the Inter Miami team bus, giving the finger and shouting chants.
Messi and New York City FC’s 29-year-old Brazilian center back and defender Thiago Martins appeared to have an altercation that resulted in a series of yellow cards in the second half.
Inter Miami defender Jordi Alba shoved Martins as he challenged Messi, and defender Tomas Aviles also persistently joined in the action, resulting in both players receiving a yellow card.
Shortly after, defender Noah Allen was booked for a foul, leading to an Inter Miami assistant coach receiving an immediate red card and being sent off the bench, and then Sergio Rodriguez’s free kick hit the defensive wall, but Luis Suarez was booked for a collision with New York City FC’s Hannes Wolf.
Nine yellow cards were issued during the match (not including the red card to the Inter Miami coach), five of which were received by Inter Miami.
“The team was not lacking anything, but the match did not have good refereeing,” Martino said.
James Sands headers: NYCFC 1, Inter Miami 1
In the final minutes of the game, James Sands headed in a corner kick to give New York City Football Club a late tie against Inter Miami.
Leo Campana’s goal came from an attacking push by Messi: Inter Miami 1, NYCFC 0
Inter Miami has made great strides, and Lionel Messi has been the driving force behind their success.
Messi found Jordi Alba running down the left, who in turn found Leo Campana running through the middle to score the first goal of the game.
Inter Miami took a 1-0 lead over NYCFC after Campana scored his team-high 31st goal in the 75th minute.
Inter Miami receives 4 yellow cards and 1 red card after a clash between Messi and NYCFC’s Thiago Martins: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
Messi and New York City FC’s 29-year-old Brazilian center back Thiago Martins appeared to have had an altercation that resulted in Messi being shown two yellow cards.
Inter Miami defender Jordi Alba pushed aside Martins as he challenged Messi, while defender Tomas Aviles persevered and joined the attack.
Moments later, defender Noah Allen received a yellow card for a foul, after which Inter Miami’s assistant coach received an immediate red card and was sent off from the bench.
Santiago Rodriguez’s free kick hit the wall of defenders before Luis Suarez was booked for a collision with NYCFC’s Hannes Wolf.
NYCFC’s Hannes Wolf misses his shot: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
New York City FC was on the way to a goal in the second half, but Hannes Wolf had a shot on goal in the 61st minute, but was unable to score.
Halftime Update: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
The game in the Bronx ended scoreless, but the Yankee Stadium crowd was in a frenzy, eager to see Lionel Messi on the field, but they had yet to have their Messi moment.
Messi came close to scoring early on with a free kick and a corner kick, but Inter Miami missed a golden chance in the first half when Robert Taylor put the ball into the path of Luis Suarez. New York City Football Club’s Santiago Rodriguez also missed two early chances.
The small size of the Yankee Stadium pitch looked tricky for Messi and Inter Miami to handle, but they may be able to cope better in the second half.
Messi dribbles towards the box but fails to shoot: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
Messi had a chance at goal, but was unable to get a shot off after dribbling multiple times in front of NYCFC defenders. It is unclear whether the grass where Messi was dribbling was on top of the Yankees’ infield, which contributed to Messi not making a move to shoot, or if defenders simply got in his way to make a pass.
Inter Miami misses golden chances to score: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
In a thrilling sequence, Luis Suarez had a free shot blocked by teammate Robert Taylor, who ran into the path of the goal. Here’s how the miss looked:
Lionel Messi nearly scores from a corner kick: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
After Robert Taylor missed a shot in the 21st minute, Lionel Messi took a corner kick, but New York City FC goalkeeper Matt Freese intercepted it in front of the goal.
Messi has never scored a corner kick goal in a professional match, but given the short size of Yankee Stadium, this came very close.
NYCFC’s Santiago Rodriguez misses a free kick: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
NYCFC’s Santiago Rodriguez fumbled a free kick that hit the right post and then hit the head of Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender, but the game remains scoreless.
The one thing that can be said about the Yankee Stadium crowd is that they are passionate.
Messi misses free kick in the 5th minute: Inter Miami 0, NYCFC 0
Just go outside for a bit.
Messi took a free kick after a New York City FC handball and his shot appeared to be on target, but it sailed wide to the right. Still, it was an exciting early moment at Yankee Stadium.
Is Messi playing?
Yes, Messi will play, Inter Miami assistant coach Javi Morales confirmed on Friday. He is in Inter Miami’s starting lineup.
Will Messi start today? New York City FC vs Inter Miami lineup
Messi has been announced as a starter for Inter Miami’s match against New York City.
New York City FC vs Inter Miami Predictions
Messi scored an assist, Luis Suarez found the back of the net and Julian Gressel added the third as Inter Miami recorded a shutout 3-0 win over NYCFC. – Safid Dean, Lionel Messi correspondent
Messi returns to New York area
Today’s match will be played at Yankee Stadium, but Messi will be back in the New York area after playing two Copa America matches at MetLife Stadium in late June and July.
Messi’s corner kick led to the goal in a 1–0 win against Chile in the group stage on June 25, and he scored the only Copa America goal in the semifinal against Canada on July 9.
Inter Miami leads the MLS standings
Inter Miami remains atop the MLS Supporters’ Shield standings with 63 points. If Inter Miami wins the Supporters’ Shield before the MLS Cup playoffs begin, it will be the club’s second title under Messi and could be the catalyst for a third title after winning the League Cup last year shortly after Messi joined the team.
Beckham talks about Messi ahead of NYCFC match
It’s been more than a year since Lionel Messi joined Major League Soccer, but Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham is still in amazement that his club has captured the World Cup champions over Argentina.
“I think from my experience and my family’s experience, that’s exactly what Leo was like. All he cared about was a place where his family could come and have fun and live a great life. And that was really what mattered to Leo,” Beckham said at the Stella Artois “Let’s Do Dinner” event in New York on Thursday.