He Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami fell this Saturday 2-1 on the court of the Nashville SC and will have to play a third and final match in the first round of MLS playoffs.
The Englishman Sam Surridge, with a penalty in the 9th minute, and Josh Bauer (45′) scored the local goals while Messi (90′) pulled one back in a spectacular individual play.
Nasvhille thus tied 1-1 on aggregate in this best-of-three tie, which will be decided in the tiebreaker on November 8 at the Inter stadium.
On a rainy Halloween night in Nashville (Tennessee), Inter revived the ghosts of their painful elimination in the first round last year against Atlanta United.
On that occasion Miami had also scored the first round but then lost two consecutive games, opening the door for Messi in his first playoffs in the North American league (MLS).
This Saturday Inter and Nashville measured forces for the third consecutive week, counting the last date of the regular season.
Nashville had been clearly surpassed by Las Garzas in the two previous games but this Saturday they changed the course thanks to an early connection between their two figures.
The German Hany Mukhtar sent a shot from his field behind the defense for the run of Surridge, who fell in the area before the hesitant departure of the Argentine goalkeeper Rocco Rios Novo.
The Inter bench strongly protested the penalty but Surridge himself converted it into the first goal of the game.
Ten minutes later, the Uruguayan Luis Suárez received a great service from Rodrigo De Paul in the area but, after cutting the goalkeeper, he crashed his shot against the post.
Messi’s genius
In the other goal, Rios Novo made up for it with two eye-catching saves before Inter condemned themselves with another defensive inattention in a corner kick taken by Mukhtar and finished into the net by Bauer.
Nervousness took over the visitors, who only managed to score with a genius from Messi on the verge of stoppage time.
The Argentine Messi received the ball from De Paul in the right corner of the area, cut back his defender and sent a shot into the top corner.
The siege in extra time was fruitless and Inter was forced to react so as not to end another season without titles.
San Diego to the tiebreaker
In other games on Saturday, the Philadelphia Union was the first team to advance from the first round with a 3-0 beating at the Chicago Fire.
The Union’s next rival, first seed in the Eastern Conference, will emerge from the series between Charlotte FC and New York City that also went to a tiebreaker.
Charlotte emerged alive this Saturday from Yankee Stadium in New York thanks to a 7-6 victory in the penalty shootout, after a goalless period of regulation.
In the West, the San Diego FC of Mexican Hirving “Chucky” Lozano fell 3-2 on penalties against the Portland Timbers and will have to play for the pass in the third game on November 9.
Lozano, returning to the team after an altercation with his coach, scored a goal in regulation time, which ended with a 2-2 tie after an agonizing goal by Gage Guerra for Portland in the 90+8.
The Vancouver Whitecaps of German Thomas Müller experienced the opposite luck in a victory against FC Dallas that qualified them for the Western semifinals.
Canadian Ralph Priso scored for Vancouver in the 90+3 minute, tying the game 1-1 and forcing a penalty shootout in which the Whitecaps won 4-2.
— Results of the first round of the best of three games (the classified team in capital letters):
– Eastern Conference
Chicago Fire – PHILADELPHIA UNION 0-3 (0-2 aggregate)
Nashville – Inter Miami 2-1 (1-1)
New York City – Charlotte 6-5 on penalties, 0-0 in regulation time (1-1)
Columbus Crew – FC Cincinnati (Sunday) (0-1)
– Western Conference
FC Dallas – VANCOUVER WHITECAPS 2-4 on penalties, 1-1 in regulation time (0-2)
Portland Timbers – San Diego FC 3-2 on penalties, 2-2 in regulation time (1-1 overall)
Austin FC – Los Angeles FC (Sunday) (0-1)
Seattle Sounders – Minnesota United (Monday) (0-1)
