Without key players Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, Inter Miami was still able to defeat the Crew 2-1 on Wednesday, snapping Columbus' MLS road winning streak.
Miami went into the match with a weakened lineup due to Copa America but was able to secure the victory in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, early in the first half, scoring both goals by the 21-minute mark. Defender Ian Fray recorded the first goal for Miami in his first match back from a season-ending ACL injury he suffered in July 2023.
Following the second goal from forward Leo Campana, Crew striker Cucho Hernandez put Columbus within one goal in the 40th minute.
The Crew were unable to follow up on Hernandez's goal, allowing Miami to pick up the victory.
This is the Crew's first MLS loss since May 11 and ends their four-game league road winning streak.
More:Crew midfielder Aidan Morris leaving Columbus for EFL Championship's Middlesbrough FC
(80') Columbus Crew make final substitution of the match
With their final substitution of the match, the Crew put in Marino Hinestroza for Yaw Yeboah.
(76') Inter Miami substitutes Shanyder Borgelin, Leonardo Frugis Afonso into match vs Columbus Crew
Miami makes two more changes, putting in Shanyder Borgelin for Ryan Taylor and Leonardo Frugis Afonso for Leo Campana.
(73') Max Arfsten, Yevhen Cheberko substituted into match Columbus Crew
Nancy makes two more switches in the lineup, this time with less than 20 minutes left in the match, putting in Max Arfsten for Mo Farsi and Yevhen Cheberko for Malte Amundsen.
(67') Ian Fray replaced by Ryan Sailor for Inter Miami
Following a collusion in Miami's box, Miami forward Ian Fray, who is coming off an injury, went down with an injury. Though Fray was able to walk off on his own, Miami made the decision to take him out of the match for Ryan Sailor.
(60') Christian Ramirez, Rudy Camacho enter match for Columbus Crew
The Crew were the first team to make a lineup change in the Columbus-Miami match, substituting Christian Ramirez in for Alex Matan and Rudy Camcho for Darlington Nagbe.
(45') Columbus Crew go into halftime down 2-1 vs Inter Miami
Goalkeeper Patrick Schulte faced six shots on goal against Miami, recording four saves on Miami's 10 overall shot attempts in the first half. Crew took seven shots, two on goal, but controlled the possession before halftime with a 63.8% possession rate.
(45+3') Columbus Crew misses free kick to finish first half
The Crew were awarded a free kick right outside Miami's goal to finish the three minutes of stoppage time added to the first half. Midfielder Yaw Yeboah took the kick, giving a short pass to striker Cucho Hernandez to Yeboah's right, allowing Hernandez to take a long shot that would over Miami's goal, ending the half.
(40') Cucho Hernandez scores for Columbus Crew, Inter Miami lead cut to 2-1
Off a long pass from midfielder Aidan Morris above the top left corner of Miami's box, striker Cucho Hernandez was able to score Columbus' first goal of the night. Morris found Hernandez making a contested run towards Miami's goal, and despite being guarded, Hernandez was able to tap the ball into the net. Miami leads 2-1.
(21') Columbus Crew go down 2-0, Leo Campana scores for Inter Miami
Despite back-to-back saves from Crew goalkeeper Patrick Schulte on forward Leo Campana's first two shots attempts in the scoring play, Schulte was unable to stop Campana's third attempt from the center of Columbus' box, giving Miami a 2-0 advantage.
(10') Inter Miami go ahead 1-0
Miami takes an early 1-0 lead over Columbus with a goal from Ian Fray in his first game back from an ACL injury. Former Crew MLS Cup champion Julian Gressel kicked the corner that Fray scored on.
Columbus Crew availability report vs Miami
Here is the Crew's official availability report:
- Evan Bush (arm): Out
- Jacen Russell-Rowe (international duty): Out
Preview: How do Crew feel about facing Miami without Messi?
For the first time sinceInter Miamisigned Lionel Messi in July 2023, the Crew will face the club, butthere will be no Messiin the lineup.
With Argentina participating in Copa America, Messi will miss Wednesday's match against Columbus.
Miami striker Luis Suarez is also on international duty, with Uruguay, for the tournament and midfielder David Ruiz and defender Tomas Aviles are suspended due to receiving red cards.
"Speaking for myself, obviously I'd loved to play against those players," said Crew midfielderMax Arfsten."I guess it’s a little frustrating, but at the same time, they’re the opposition with or without those players, and anytime you play a team on the road, it’s not going to be easy."
Read more here.
Inter Miami starting lineup vs Columbus Crew
Here is the starting 11 for Miami vs Columbus:
- GK: Drake Callender
- DF: Jordi Alba
- DF: Noah Allen
- DF: Ian Fray
- DF: Sergii Kryvtsov
- MF: Yannick Bright
- MF: Sergio Busquets
- MF: Julian Gressel
- FW: Leonardo Campana
- FW: Benjamin Cremaschi
- FW: Robert Taylor
Columbus Crew starting lineup vs Inter Miami
Here is the starting 11 for Columbus vs Miami:
- GK: Patrick Schulte
- DF: Malte Amundsen
- DF: Steven Moreira
- DF: Sean Zawadzki
- MF: Mo Farsi
- MF: Aidan Morris
- MF: Darlington Nagbe
- MF: Yaw Yeboah
- FW: Cucho Hernandez
- FW: Alex Matan
- FW: Diego Rossi
Who are the referees for Columbus Crew vs Inter Miami?
Here are the officials for the Crew vs Inter Miami on Wednesday night:
- Referee: Sergii Boiko
- Assistant Referee 1: Cameron Blanchard
- Assistant Referee 2: Chris Elliott
- Fourth Official: Natalie Simon
- VAR: Younes Marrakchi
- Assistant VAR: TJ Zablocki
Columbus Crew overall record vs Inter Miami
The Crew are 2-3-1 overall against Inter Miami and 0-2-1 at Chase Stadium.
How to listen to Columbus Crew vs Inter Miami radio broadcast
The Crew vs. Inter Miami English-speaking radio broadcast will be on Alt 105.7 FM and available via the iHeartRadio app. Columbus' regular radio broadcaster Chris Doran will be on the call.
The Spanish radio broadcast can be found on La Grande 102.5 FM and the La Grande radio app with Juan Valladares doing play-by-play.
Columbus Crew vs Inter Miami streaming information
The Crew-Miami matchwill be available on Apple TVfor free, meaning there is no MLS Season Pass subscription required to stream. Here are the broadcast teams for tonight:
- English broadcast: Steve Cangialosi (play-by-play), Danny Higginbotham (analyst)
- Spanish broadcast: Sammy Sadovnik (play-by-play), Diego Valeri (analyst)
When is the Columbus Crew vs Inter Miami match?
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, June 19 at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
bmackay@dispatch.com
