Inter Miami experienced their first goalless match of the season in Major League Soccer, as they were held to a draw by the Chicago Fire on Sunday.
A club-record attendance of 62,358 spectators filled Soldier Field for the chance to see Lionel Messi and his Inter teammates, who faced a resilient performance from the home side.
Chicago, managed by ex-USA coach Gregg Berhalter, did well to restrict Messi and his former Barcelona colleague Luis Suarez to just a few scoring opportunities.
The closest Messi came to finding the net was in the third minute, when he unleashed a powerful strike from outside the box, which was expertly saved by Fire keeper Chris Brady.
Displaying impressive confidence, Chicago came close to scoring twice in the first half; Mauricio Pineda forced Oscar Ustari into a full-stretch save, while Philip Zinckernagel’s effort clipped the outside of the post from a tight angle.
Suarez missed a golden opportunity to give Miami the lead just before half-time when Noah Allen floated a ball into the box, but the Uruguayan’s shot sailed over the bar.
Post interval, Chicago applied significant pressure, with much of the creativity stemming from former Lille winger Jonathan Bamba.
The Fire nearly snatched all three points in the 88th minute when Bamba’s shot was parried away by Ustari, but Maren Haile-Selassie skewed the follow-up attempt wide.
Bamba was thwarted again by Ustari moments later, and in a dramatic finish, Miami also had a chance to steal a late victory, but Tadeo Allende pulled his shot wide from a promising position.
Miami appeared fatigued following their midweek CONCACAF Champions Cup triumph over Los Angeles FC on Wednesday, and coach Javier Mascherano seemed relieved to walk away with a point.
“We came here carrying a heavy load, both physically and mentally. So, it’s important not to lose as well,” he remarked.
“I’ll focus on the positives, specifically that we managed to keep a clean sheet today, after conceding in our last three matches. Thankfully, we have a longer week ahead to prepare, which will be a much-needed break given our start to the season,” he added.
In other fixtures, former Miami coach Phil Neville saw his Portland Timbers continue their upward trajectory with a convincing 4-2 victory against Sporting Kansas City, spearheaded by Venezuelan forward Kevin Kelsy, who bagged a brace.
Portland remains unbeaten in their last five matches, climbing to fourth place in the Western Conference.
The Columbus Crew also made a comeback, overcoming a 1-0 deficit to win 2-1 against St. Louis City. Brazilian Joao Klauss opened the scoring for the hosts, before Crew defender Steven Moreira equalised with a well-placed volley. Uruguayan Diego Rossi then sealed the victory with a precise low drive from outside the box in the 55th minute.
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
Fanpage: SportArena.com.au.
LiveScore – Live Sports Results & Odds.
