MIAMI — Lionel Messi scored his first goal since the passing of his father, but Inter Miami was forced to settle for a 2-2 draw against the Philadelphia Union on Wednesday in Major League Soccer (MLS).
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The Argentine superstar put Miami ahead 2-1 in the 26th minute with a signature curling left-footed strike into the far corner.
Messi offered a subdued celebration with his teammates, briefly smiling before offering his trademark gesture, pointing both index fingers toward the sky.
Five minutes earlier, Messi was heavily involved in Miami’s opening goal. He tracked Uruguayan striker Luis Suárez’s run down the left flank before Suárez headed the ball across to young American Daniel Painter, who finished from close range.
The hosts managed to salvage a point thanks to goals from Indiana Vassilev in the 11th minute and Neil Pierre in the 58th minute.
"We came here to win, but we couldn't achieve that," said Miami head coach Guillermo Hoyos. "We are not happy with the draw because we don't like drawing. Now we have to try to rest and focus on the next match in less than 72 hours," referring to Saturday's clash against Toronto FC.
The 39-year-old Messi brought his season tally to 13 goals, moving into second place in the MLS Golden Boot race—three goals behind Croatia's Petar Musa, who scored twice in Dallas's 4-3 victory over Real Salt Lake on Wednesday.
The Miami star had failed to score in his previous two appearances since returning from Argentina following the death of his father, Jorge, on August 8. During those two matches, Miami was eliminated from the Leagues Cup in a 3-2 loss to Mexico’s Club León, before suffering a heavy 4-1 league defeat against Nashville, a match in which Messi missed a penalty.
Miami is now winless in its last four matches and trails Eastern Conference leaders Nashville by seven points, following Nashville's 1-0 victory over the New York Red Bulls on Wednesday.
Lewandowski Strikes as Chicago Beats Griezmann's Orlando
In a matchup featuring two recent marquee MLS arrivals, Robert Lewandowski converted a penalty to lift Chicago Fire to a 2-1 victory over Antoine Griezmann and Orlando City.
Chicago secured its sixth consecutive victory across all competitions—including three in the Leagues Cup—in a match delayed for over an hour due to severe weather.
Busu Ditijani gave the visitors an early lead in the fourth minute, and the score remained 1-0 until lightning forced a temporary suspension of play.
David Brekalo brought Orlando level with a 52nd-minute header before Polish star Lewandowski, who joined Chicago in June, drew a foul inside the box from Swedish defender Robin Jansson.
Lewandowski stepped up and calmly sent goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau the wrong way to seal the victory for Chicago.
Griezmann had a chance to equalize on a counterattack in the 77th minute, but his effort dragged just wide of the post.
The victory elevated Chicago to third place in the Eastern Conference, four points behind Inter Miami with a game in hand.
