Messi Held Scoreless but Inter Miami Extends Unbeaten String with 1-0 Win Over DC United

Lionel Messi - File/AFP
Lionel Messi - File/AFP
TT

Messi Held Scoreless but Inter Miami Extends Unbeaten String with 1-0 Win Over DC United

Lionel Messi - File/AFP
Lionel Messi - File/AFP

Lionel Messi was kept off the scoresheet for the second consecutive match but Inter Miami extended its unbeaten string with a 1-0 win over DC United on Saturday night.

Leo Campana scored four minutes into second half stoppage time as Miami, 6-0-3 since a 4-0 loss at the New York Red Bulls on March 23, avoided a second consecutive scoreless draw. Campana, who entered the match a minute earlier, received a pass from Sergio Busquets on the right wing and converted on a shot that landed inside the left post.

The win improved Eastern Conference-leading Miami to 9-2-4 with 31 points. DC United dropped to 4-5-5 and 17 points.

Miami has now won six and tied three since a 4-0 loss at New York Red Bulls on March 23, The AP reported.

Messi returned to the lineup after missing Wednesday’s match at Orlando because of knee soreness.

The Argentine star forward had at least one goal and assist in five consecutive matches until a 3-2 win at Montreal May 11. Messi began Saturday with a league-leading 12 assists.

Tightly-marked for most of the match, Messi found a slight opening in the 71st minute but his shot from 22 yards sailed high above the crossbar.

Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender preserved the shutout when he stopped a shot from United’s Jacob Murrell in the 86th minute.

The start of the match was delayed 25 minutes after thunderstorms hit Chase Stadium before the clubs’ pregame drills. The rain intensified again shortly after kickoff then subsided in the 30th minute.

Messi had two free kicks blocked by a wall of United defenders in the 21st and 39th minutes.

Both clubs continue their league schedule next Saturday, when Inter Miami visits Vancouver and DC United hosts Chicago.



‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
TT

‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)

The Paris Olympics look likely to get off to a soggy start.

Meteo-France, the French weather service, is predicting “flooding rains” Friday evening when the opening ceremony is set to unroll along the Seine River. But the show is set to go on as planned, starting at 1:30 p.m. EDT/7:30 p.m. CEST and should last more than three hours.

Already in the late afternoon, skies were gray with intermittent drizzle. There was a silver lining, though, with temperatures expected to stay relatively warm throughout the evening.

Instead of a traditional march into a stadium, about 6,800 athletes will parade on more than 90 boats on the Seine River for 6 kilometers (3.7 miles). Though 10,700 athletes are expected to compete at these Olympics, hundreds of soccer players are based outside Paris, surfers are in Tahiti and many have yet to arrive for their events in the second week, organizers said Thursday.

Hundreds of thousands of people, including 320,000 paying and invited ticket-holders, are expected to line the Seine’s banks as athletes are paraded along the river on boats.