Inter Miami drew 2-2 with Austin at the opening of their new permanent stadium, dubbed the New Stadium for sponsorship reasons, in a match that focused specifically on pre-match parties, with Lionel Messi’s club not waking up until the second half.
Inter Miami had a chance in the 45th minute of the second half and came close to victory in the 90th minute with Luis Suarez’s canceled goal, but his offside position made the goal null and void.
Lionel Messi reacts to Inter Miami’s new stadium, says it’s “really impressive”
Before that, after Austin’s first goal, Messi tied it with a header, but his slip led to the Texans’ second goal early in the second half. The night revolved around the inauguration of the stadium, perhaps too much, but Inter Miami spared no effort for this event.
The party featured singer Marc Anthony singing the national anthem, fireworks and speeches from the club’s co-founders Jorge and Jose Mas and David Beckham, and the start of the game was delayed by 30 minutes.
The opening game felt like a centerpiece event for Inter Miami, with three of Miami’s club owners taking up half of the game to warm up their players while Austin warmed up on the pitch.
So it was no surprise that it took five minutes after Brazilian Guilherme Bilo headed the corner kick for the Texans to become the first team to score at the New Stadium.
Messi’s quick response
Messi reacted almost immediately after starting and finishing the move that led to the equalizer, creating an opening for Ian Frey and heading in a cross seconds later. The Argentine, who Beckham described before the match as “the best player in the history of this sport”, has once again become a cornerstone of Inter Miami.
They fell short of Austin’s second goal this time as well, but after losing the ball in the second half, they started fighting back, and new signing Jayden Nelson finished well.
It took a while for the goal to arrive, but the second goal was reminiscent of the Inter Miami area throughout the first half, especially as Ouzuni’s shot went close to the top corner before Facundo Torres hit the post with a shot from the penalty spot.
Defensive stability was not a strong point for either team on the night, with a flurry of chances between the penalty areas highlighting the fragility of both backlines.
Thirty minutes after the end of the match, Inter Miami’s double shot was blocked by the opposing goalkeeper, followed by Austin’s backheel shot inside the six-yard box that went wide. The proof of this was just before Messi took a personal shot, he cut into three opponents and fired the shot past the goalkeeper.
With Inter Miami in siege mode, looking for an equalizer, Luis Suarez, who had come on as a substitute eight minutes earlier, scored the second goal in the 81st minute. Matteo Silvetti’s corner kick was headed home by German Bertelame at the far post, and the Uruguayan finished unopposed from close range.
Suarez almost became a hero in the 90th minute when he slotted the rebound into the goal after Messi’s free-kick hit the crossbar, but his offside position meant he left Inter without finishing the party in his new home.
As a result, Inter Miami is in 4th place in the East Division with 11 points, and Austin is in 10th place in the West Division with 6 points.Technical sheet:2. Inter Miami: Dane St. Clair; Ian Frey (Gonzalo Lujan, m.46), Maximiliano Falcon, Mikael, Noah Allen, German Bertelame m.58). Tadeo Allende, Rodrigo de Paul, David Ayala (Yannick Bright, m.58), Telasco Segovia (Luis Suárez, m.73). Leo Messi and Matteo Silvetti (Daniel Pinter, m.87).Coach: Javier Mascherano.2. Austin FC: Brad Stuber; John Gallagher, Oleksandr Svatok, Brendan Hines-Icke, Guilherme Biro (John Bell, 68). Facundo Torres (Jaeden Nelson), Nicolas Duversalky, Ilie Sanchez (Bessard Sabovic, 68 years old), Joseph Rosales (Zan Kolmanic, 80 years old), Milt Uzuni, Christian Ramirez (Calvin Fodry, 76 years old).Coach: Nico Estevez.Score: 0-1, 5 minutes: Guilherme Biro. 1-1, 10 minutes: Lionel Messi. 1-2, 53 minutes: Jayden Nelson. 2-2, 81 minutes: Luis SuarezReferee: Allen Chapman. He warned Inter Miami’s Maximiliano Falcon and Yannick Bright.Incident: MLS Round 6 match played at New Stadium in Miami.
