James Sands scored in the 95th minute to fuel New York City FC to a 1-1 draw against Lionel Messi and Inter Miami FC on Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium.
Sands converted a cross from Santiago Rodriguez following a corner kick to earn NYCFC’s second draw of the season against Inter Miami. The two clubs played to a 1-1 deadlock on March 30.
The result dealt a blow to Miami’s pursuit of the MLS Supporters’ Shield and the regular-season points record.
With four games to go, Miami need 10 points to eclipse the New England Revolution’s mark of 73 points from 2021. Gerardo “Tata” Martino’s side finished the game with a nine-point lead in the battle for the Supporters’ Shield, though multiple teams below it had games in hand.
Matthew Freese turned aside one shot for NYCFC (11-11-8, 41 points), who saw their winless stretch extend to nine matches (0-3-6). Their last victory was a 2-0 triumph over CF Montreal on July 3.
Miami’s Leo Campana scored in the 75th minute on assists from both Messi and Jordi Alba.
Drake Callender made three saves for Inter Miami (19-4-7, 64 points), who are 5-0-2 in their last seven MLS matches. The Herons’ last loss was a 6-1 drubbing against FC Cincinnati on July 6.
Messi, an eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, was playing in his third match since returning from an injury sustained during the Copa America final on July 11.
The Herons played without star Sergio Busquets due to a personal matter, per the Miami Herald. His Instagram page showed that he recently got engaged to his longtime partner.
Campana immediately made an impact after entering the match in the 72nd minute as a substitute for Robert Taylor. Messi raced up the field and slid a lead pass to Alba, who promptly fed Campana at the doorstep for an easy conversion.
The goal was Campana’s eighth of the season and second in as many matches.
NYCFC registered the lone shot on goal and had five corner kicks during a scoreless first half.
Messi nearly opened the scoring in the fifth minute, however his direct free kick from outside the box sailed just wide right of the net. Luis Suarez also had a prime opportunity that was thwarted because Taylor inadvertently ran into his shot.
Information from Field Level Media contributed to this report.
