Inter Miami, with Leo Messi and Luis Suarez as substitutes, could not take the victory from Atlanta in a real battle at the Mercedes Benz Stadium on Wednesday.
The Miami team took the lead twice, but without their starting center backs they were unable to maintain their advantage and ended up drawing 2-2 against a very combative Atlanta United.
For Miami, David Ruiz (29′) and Leonardo Campana (59′) scored, while for Atlanta, Saba Lobjanidze (56′) and Aleksey Miranchuk (84′) scored.
With 30 goals in his name, Campana has become the club’s all-time top scorer.
With the point, Inter Miami (19-6-4) continues to sail alone in first place in the Eastern Conference with 63 points, ahead of Cincinnati, second with 55, before visiting Yankee Stadium this Saturday to face New York City.
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Atlanta shot more (17-2), but the Miami team did better ((7-5 shots on target) and had the ball a little more (52.2%).
Messi gave the crowd his usual recital of football, with feints, passes, and shots from another galaxy, although this time he was unable to get the ball over the goal line.
Jordi Alba, who also came on as a substitute, linked up very well with him and Suarez who played with his heart.
Miami coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino wisely turned his team around, starting virtually all of the substitutes with an unprecedented starting lineup consisting of Drake Callender, Chelo Weigandt, Ian Fray, Sergio Kryvtsov, Franco Negri, David Ruiz, Jannick Bright, Benjamin Cremaschi, Julian Gressel, Campana and Robert Taylor.
The hard-fought first half ended 1-0 in favor of the South Florida club, who, thanks to their greater efforts (3-2), were more successful (2-0 on target), especially because they managed to score the first goal of the match after 45 minutes of intense battle.
The opening stages were back and forth, resulting in little play in the midfield. There were many inaccuracies and few chances.
There was only a lukewarm shot from Miami, who subsequently took control of the match until they opened the scoring.
The 1-0 for the visiting team was scored by midfielder Ruiz who in the 29th minute, close to the penalty spot, received a great pass from full-back Negri and then turned around and shot, as if he were taking a penalty, well positioned on his right and really impossible for veteran goalkeeper Brad Guzan.
Atlanta pushed a little and Miami counterattacked wisely, although without causing any damage, and went to rest with a minimal advantage.
Two minutes into the second half, Messi got up to warm up with the rest of the substitutes and the crowd immediately woke up and then, after 10 inconsequential minutes, Atlanta equalised.
Lobjanidze got ahead of Fray and reached the six-yard box to unleash a powerful header that went under Callender’s legs, after a great cross from the left by Pedro Amador, to make it 1-1 in the 56th minute.
Atlanta’s joy lasted three minutes when Campana took a free kick in the 59th minute after a foul on Cremaschi by Dax McCarthy on the edge of the area.
His powerful shot from mid-height was deflected by McCarthy himself and the ball found its way into the net to give Miami a 2-1 lead again.
Martino brought on Messi for Gressel, causing the Mercedes Benz Stadium to explode and another match began.
The back and forth was much more intense, especially after Alba came on for Taylor and Suárez for Campana, although Inter Miami’s fantastic combinations were not rewarded and it was Atlanta that took the lead in the 84th minute.
After a harmless throw-in, Miami’s defense fell asleep, mainly Negri and Fede Redondo who had come on for Ruiz and allowed Atlanta forward Miranchuk to take an impressive left-footed shot from outside the area into the left corner, surprising everyone and tying the game again at 2-2.
The 12 minutes that followed, including six minutes of stoppage time, were sheer madness.
The ball passed from one area to another in seconds and although Miami, led by Messi, was able to finish off the match, Atlanta also had its chances to take the win.
In the end, the draw did justice to what happened on the pitch, where a great spectacle was put on.
