Lionel Messi and Federico Bernardeschi each scored goals, but it wasn’t enough for either side to tip the scales in their favor in a 1-1 draw between host Inter Miami and Toronto FC on Sunday night in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
The result was particularly frustrating for Inter Miami (4-0-2, 14 points), who slipped out of first place in the Eastern Conference standings after a match many expected it to win against Toronto (0-4-3, 3 points).
The result was even more disappointing for Inter Miami considering it was able to have Messi start and play the duration of the match and had fellow stars Luis Suarez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets also in the starting lineup.
Further, Inter Miami had two goals wiped out — one by an offside call and the other due to a foul called on Messi just before he fired a spectacular shot into the back of the net. Messi’s shot appeared to give Inter Miami a 1-0 lead late in the first half.
Instead Toronto, which scored first. In the 47th minute, Bernardeschi controlled a cross from Lorenzo Insigne, and despite being challenged by two Miami defenders in front of the goal, tapped it just out of reach of a sliding Drake Callender, Miami’s goalkeeper.
Callender made his first start of the season after making a brief appearance in Inter Miami’s MLS match last week against Philadelphia.
Messi answered almost immediately in the fifth minute of first half stoppage time when he controlled a ball at the top of the box from Telasco Segovia and left-footed it from distance past Toronto goalkeeper Sean Johnson.
It was Messi’s third MLS goal of the season and sixth across all competitions.
Inter Miami appeared to take a 1-0 advantage in the 29th minute when Messi and Luis Suarez set up a shot from the top of the box by Segovia, who scored. But Suarez was ruled to have been offside.
Messi appeared to score in the 39th minute on a similar long-distance shot. But the goal was disallowed after video assisted review when it was ruled Messi fouled one of Toronto’s defenders before scoring.
Toronto also had its chances to strike early in the match. But Theo Corbeanu hit the post in the 17th and 19th minutes on what appeared to be great scoring chances.
–Field Level Media
