Inter Miami CF earned a dramatic late 3-2 win over Charlotte FC at DRV PNK Stadium on Saturday night. Midfielder Robert Taylor, Heineken Man of the Match Gonzalo Higuaín and winger Emerson Rodríguez, who bagged the late winner for the team, scored Inter Miami’s goals in the match, while captain Gregore registered two assists.
Lineup Notes
Inter Miami lined up for the match against Charlotte with a starting XI featuring a new face for the club. Drake Callender started in goal; DeAndre Yedlin, Damion Lowe, Ryan Sailor, and Chris McVey formed the team’s backline; Jean Mota, captain Gregore, and new Designated Player Alejandro Pozuelo started in midfield; Taylor and Indiana Vassilev started on the wings flanking striker Leonardo Campana in attack.
Pozuelo’s inclusion in the starting XI marked his first appearance for the team since arriving in a trade with Toronto FC on July 7. Sailor and Vassilev, meanwhile, returned to the starting lineup for the match.
Match Action
After a weather delay of over an hour, the visitor struck in the match’s opening moments. Charlotte won the ball high up the pitch and Karol Swiderski slipped a pass for Yordy Reyna into the box, who slid his shot inside the far post for the early 0-1 lead.
From that point, Inter Miami began to assert itself in the match, dominating possession and creating attacking opportunities. In the 25th minute, Taylor combined with Yedlin in the box and skilfully wriggled past three defenders before playing a ball to Campana in front of goal, but the striker’s powerful shot was saved.
The team continued to push in the following minutes, including a driving run by Pozuelo before a deflected return pass from Vassilev found the former MVP near the endline. Pozuelo then patiently evaded the keeper’s attempt to claim the ball and cut a pass back to Vassilev, whose shot beat the keeper but was cleared off the line by Harrison Afful.
Despite Inter Miami’s control of the rhythm of the match, it was Charlotte that struck next. In the 42nd minute, Quinn McNeill crossed from the right wing to Reyna on the left side of the box, who then curled a shot into the top corner to make it 0-2.
Despite the 0-2 scoreline, the hosts entered halftime with a 58% share of possession and nine shots to just three from Charlotte.
Inter Miami, however, made good on its control early in the second half; Taylor again made a weaving run past several Charlotte defenders, but this time he powered a low shot across goal and inside the far post to halve the deficit. The goal was Taylor’s third of the season for Inter Miami.
The momentum continued to grow from there, with the team appearing to have an equalizer in the 63rd minute when Pozuelo connected with substitute Higuaín, but the goal was disallowed by the offside flag. In the 72nd minute, however, Higuaín found the back of the net again and this time the goal stood; Gregore received the ball outside of the box and scanned the field before unlocking the defense with a clipped ball behind the defense for Higuaín, who took one touch to control and fired a shot across goal and inside the far post to make it 2-2. The goal marked Higuaín’s second in as many matches and fourth of the season, while the assist marked Gregore’s second of the night and third of the campaign.
Inter Miami then made a key substitution in the 87th minute, when Emerson Rodríguez replaced Taylor. Six minutes later, Rodríguez bagged a dramatic winner for the hosts. Midfielder Bryce Duke received the ball from Higuaín before threading a ball in between defenders and into the box for Rdoríguez, who controlled the pass calmly and fired past the keeper for the late winner. The goal was Rodríguez’s first for the team.
Heineken Man of the Match
Second-half super sub Gonzalo Higuaín earned Heineken Man of the Match honors, netting an equalizer after coming on.
Post-Match Reaction
“I thought it was the best performance of the season. I said after training on Thursday, the players looked unbelievable the last two days. I thought we performed brilliantly in the game today. We played with determination,” said head coach Phil Neville.
Next Match
Inter Miami’s next match will take place in just a few days when the team hosts Spanish powerhouse side FC Barcelona for a historic international friendly at DRV PNK Stadium on Tuesday, July 19 at 8 p.m. ET.
Individual match tickets for each remaining regular season home match on the Inter Miami CF schedule are available by visiting https://www.intermiamicf.com/tickets/single. Fans can also call 305-428-0611 to learn more.
Stats
Possession:
MIA - 59%CLT - 41%
Shots:
MIA - 15CLT - 4
Saves:
MIA - 1CLT - 3
Corners:
MIA - 7CLT - 4
Fouls:
MIA - 13CLT - 12
