Dreyer strikes late to deny history-making Messi as Inter Miami settle for fourth straight draw
Inter Miami's recent struggles went on as Anders Dreyer struck a late equaliser to earn San Diego FC a 2-2 draw, denying Lionel Messi the chance to crown another milestone night with a victory.
Dreyer opened the scoring inside 12 minutes at Nu Stadium and completed his brace with eight minutes remaining, either side of goals from Messi and Luis Suarez, as Miami were held to a fourth consecutive stalemate despite extending their unbeaten run to five matches.
Dreyer draws first blood, Messi answers
San Diego's 12th-minute opener came out of nowhere. Jeppe Tverskov slid a perfectly weighted throughball in behind for Dreyer, who charged past Miami's defence from the halfway line before dinking a lovely finish over goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair.
Miami were back on level terms 12 minutes later in unusual fashion. Messi's free-kick floated more like a cross towards the far post, missed everyone in the middle and snuck in.
The Herons kept pushing. German Berterame's curling effort was cleared in front of the line by the retreating Ian Murphy, but San Diego could not clear their lines and Yannick Bright picked out Messi, whose first-time shot was kept out by CJ dos Santos.
At the other end, Marcus Ingvartsen had a goal disallowed for an offside in the build-up, while dos Santos punched away an awkward strike from Suarez.
Suarez strikes, Dreyer answers again
The Uruguayan eventually got his goal in the 74th minute, lifting the ball over dos Santos from a tight angle to find the far corner and put Miami in front.
But the lead lasted only eight minutes. Dreyer again timed his run to perfection to meet a Tverskov pass, and a rooted St. Clair could not get a hand to it.
Messi had the chance to win it in stoppage time, bending a low shot through a crowded box, but dos Santos got down to keep it out despite seeing it late.
Messi makes history in vain
While Miami's frustrations mounted, Messi continued to make history. His free-kick was his 101st goal for the Herons in total and his 20th in MLS this season, extending his lead in the Golden Boot race.
It also made the Argentine just the second player in the league's history to score 20-plus goals in three straight seasons, after Los Angeles FC's Denis Bouanga (2023-2025).
Messi finished the match with 10 of Miami's 19 shots, five of them on target, and led the metrics for touches in the opposition box (14) and chances created (three) — but Dreyer made sure he would not end up on the winning side.
Vital point for San Diego
Dreyer's second goal was his 11th in MLS this term, more than any other San Diego player, and secured a vital point for a side that halted a three-game losing streak and responded well to their 5-0 thumping at the hands of the Philadelphia Union.
For Miami, the draw means they have held the lead in three of their last four matches yet won none of them, and they now sit 11 points behind Eastern Conference leaders Nashville SC.