A 95th minute Luis Suarez equaliser has helped Inter Miami steal a crucial 2-2 away draw against Nashville in the CONCACAF Champions Cup round-of-16 first leg.
Nashville led by two goals early in the first half courtesy a superb brace from Jacob Shaffelburg, but the brilliance of Lionel Messi pulled one goal back before Suarez tied the game deep in stoppage time.
It only took four minutes for Shaffelburg to stun Inter Miami as he finished clinically from Shaquell Moore’s pass after an error from Tomas Aviles.
Inter Miami pressed continually to get an equaliser but Nashville absorbed pressure and looked to spring counter attacks into space.
Shortly after half-time, Shaffelburg doubled Nashville’s advantage with a wonderful strike from outside the area.
However, the two-goal lead only lasted five minutes as Messi stepped up outside the box to deliver an expert, curling finish.
It looked as if Nashville had scored the third goal on 83 minutes, but Moore was just offside in the build up before he slid home the finish.
Up stepped Suarez in stoppage time to snare a draw, as he rose highest and unattended in the six-yard box home to head home Sergio Busquets cross.
The Sporting News followed the Nashville vs. Inter Miami match live, providing score updates, commentary and highlights as it happened.
Nashville vs. Inter Miami final score
Kickoff: 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT
Location: Geodis Park (Nashville, Tennessee)
Referee: Marco Ortiz (Mexico)
Starting lineups:
Nashville (3-5-2): Willis (GK) – MacNaughton, Zimmerman, Godoy — Moore, Davis, Muyl, Shaffelburg, Lovitz — Boyd, Mukhtar.
Inter Miami (5-3-2): Callender (GK) – Allen, Freire, Kryvtsov, Aviles, Gressel – Gomez, Busquets, Redondo – Suarez, Messi
Nashville vs. Inter Miami live updates, highlights, commentary
FULL TIME – NASHVILLE 2-2 INTER MIAMI
95 min: GOAL INTER MIAMI – Luis Suarez
Incredible. The Uruguayan legend is free in the six-yard box, rises high to head the ball home almost unattended.
— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) March 8, 2024
91 min: Seven minutes of added on time.
Allen finds space down the left, he spears the cross in for Suarez or Messi, but it misses both. Expect Inter Miami to push here.
90 min: We are nearing the end of the 90. Expect there to be a heap of added on time.
83 min: OFFISIDE GOAL NASHVILLE
Moore is fed the ball by Muyl in the penalty area, he takes a touch and slides the ball home. A third goal for Nashville. The crowd are delighted. However, VAR rules the goal out for offside on Moore. Boy, that was tight.
82 min: SUBSTITUTION NASHVILLE
Gaines replaces two-goal hero Shaffelburg, Bunbury comes on for Muhktar
80 min: The substitutions and long treatment delay have sucked the life out of this game. There is going to be quite a bit of added on time though.
75 min: SUBSTITUTION NASHVILLE
Washington and Yearwood enter the game for Lovitz and Godoy.
67 min: Messi has a shot from outside the area but it is deflected well wide. Suarez and Messi are having a spat with Godoy at the moment. Referee is trying to sort out the drama.
64 min: Inter Miami are really pushing at the moment. They want that second away goal. Nashville are going to have to be resolute throughout the rest of this match.
58 min: OFFSIDE GOAL INTER MIAMI
Gomez puts the ball in the back of the net but he is flagged for offside. That was close. VAR looking at the incident now.
57 min: It’s been a much more open half so far. Nashville have opened up to try to finish the game.
52 min: GOAL INTER MIAMI – Lionel Messi
Suarez tees up Messi outside the area and the Argentine wizard curls a shot inside the left post. Great strike. Crucial away goal for Inter Miami in this first leg.
— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) March 8, 2024
48 min: CHANCE NASHVILLE
Muyl’s curled shot from outside the area just doesn’t come back enough. So close. Nashville looking to finish off their opponents. Been a fast start in this half.
46 min: GOAL NASHVILLE – Jacob Shaffelburg
What a strike from Shaffelburg. He was given too much space on the edge of the area. He made a touch inside and then speared the shot into the top corner. Wow. 2-0 to Nashville.
— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) March 8, 2024
45 min: The second half is underway.
HALF TIME – NASHVILLE 1-0 INTER MIAMI
48 min: Messi’s free kick is into the wall and Nashville survive.
47 min: Free kick to Inter Miami just outside the penalty area. Up steps Lionel Messi…
46 min: There will be three minutes of added on time.
45 min: Huge amount of pressure from Inter Miami comes to nothing. There was a handball appeal but VAR would have looked at it.
40 min: 72 per cent possession for Inter Miami. Nashville will be keen for half-time.
37 min: CHANCE INTER MIAMI
Wow. Messi wriggled clear in the penalty area but his attempted dink over Willis was blocked. Nashville living dangerously.
33 min: As soon as I say that, Messi slips Suarez through the left side of the penalty box but the cross is blocked.
32 min: Inter Miami has had most of the possession but Nashville have had just as many dangerous attacks. A masterful counter-attacking performance so far.
25 min: SHOT INTER MIAMI
Messi brings the ball down out of the air, tries an audacious volley on the bounce but it’s deflected for a corner.
23 min: SHOT NASHVILLE
After a scramble, Muhktar tries a snap shot from outside the box, which is batted away for a corner by Callender.
22 min: Suarez just misses a through pass to Messi’s run into the centre of the penalty area. So close.
19 min: Shaffelburg has been superb down the left. He once again gets into a crossing position but his delivery is too high for a team-mate.
18 min: The game is following a familiar pattern. Nashville absorbing pressure and looking to spring attacks on the counter.
13 min: CHANCE INTER MIAMI
Messi is teed up inside the penalty area and his curled shot is inches wide. You just expected the net to ripple there/
10 min: CHANCE NASHVILLE
Shaffelburg springs clear down the left flank. He gets to the byline, crosses it in but his cross is batted down by Callender. Mukhtar moves in for the scraps and has a shot cleared off the line. Then the offside flag goes up. VAR looks at the play and clear it.
9 min: Game has resumed with Inter Miami dominating possession. No panic just yet. Messi and Suarez involved but haven’t had an impact yet.
4 min: GOAL NASHVILLE – Jacob Shaffelburg
Shaffelburg profits from a defensive mistake from Aviles. He is fed the ball in space and finishes clinically past Callender. What a start for Nashville. Against the early run of play.
— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) March 8, 2024
2 min: Inter Miami with all the early possession and pressure. Nashville sitting back.
Kickoff: We are underway here at Geodis Park. There is barely a spare seat in the house
Minutes to kickoff: Players are entering the field currently. There is a huge cheer as Messi and Suarez wander out to the pitch.
10 mins before kickoff: Getting closer to the start here. Inter Miami have picked a full strength lineup including Messi, Suarez, Busquets and new signing Federico Redondo.
25 mins before kickoff: Nashville have announced their starting XI for the match.
The XI Boys in Gold to start Round 2️⃣ of @TheChampions ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/ckq6lU3TpE
— Nashville SC (@NashvilleSC) March 8, 2024
30 mins before kickoff: Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez are in Inter Miami’s starting XI.
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) March 8, 2024
90 mins before kickoff: Welcome to tonight’s live coverage of the CONCACAF Champions League match between Nashville and Inter Miami.
Inter Miami vs Nashville SC lineups, team news
Tata Martino has so far resisted the potentially tempting urge to rest Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez early in the season, leaning on them both and profiting as a result. Yet with the memory of Messi’s late-season injury last year still in his mind, this is, in all likelihood, the time where Messi and Suarez take a seat.
New signing Federico Redondo has only just arrived with the club after sorting out his visa issues, and will be unlikely to feature here. DeAndre Yedlin was traded to FC Cincinnati after last weekend’s game, and thus the right-back spot is wide open, likely to eventually be filled by a new signing. Noah Allen looks to be moving to center-back but could deputize in the short-term, while young Ian Frey could be an option down the road but is still working on recovery from his third career ACL tear suffered last year.
First-choice goalkeeper Drake Callender has been fantastic to start 2024, and it will be interesting to see if Tata Martino sticks with him for all competitions or utilizes a “cup goalkeeper” and gives CJ Dos Santos a chance to shine.
Inter Miami projected starting lineup (3-5-2): Callender (GK) — Allen, Freire, Kryvtsov — Gressel, D. Gomez, Mota, Sunderland, Taylor — Borgelin, Campana.
The most pressing absence for Nashville is the gaping hole made by Hany Mukhtar who has missed the start of the season with a hip injury. He will reportedly return to training soon, but it would be hasty for Nashville head coach Gary Smith to deploy his most valuable asset so soon in a midweek continental match, and instead will likely wait until at least this coming weekend’s league fixture, if not longer.
Injuries to Sam Surridge and Randall Leal aren’t as bad as initially feared, but they will still not make the lineup here.
Nashville SC projected starting lineup (3-5-2): Panicco (GK) — MacNaughton, Zimmerman, Maher — Moore, Davis, Muyl, Yearwood, Lovitz — Boyd, Bunbury.
How to watch Inter Miami vs Nashville SC: Live stream, TV channel
TV Channel (English): FS2
Streaming (English): Fubo, Fox Sports website & app
TV Channel (Spanish): TUDN
Streaming (Spanish): Fubo, TUDN website & app
The USA broadcast rights for the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup are owned by FOX Sports, who will be televising this match on FS2, which is available to stream on Fubo, who offer a FREE trial for new users.
Meanwhile, there is a Spanish-language broadcast available on TUDN, which is also streaming on Fubo.
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