Inter Miami Draw 2-2 With San Diego in Kily González's MLS Debut

Inter Miami drew 2-2 with San Diego FC at Nu Stadium in Cristian "Kily" González's first MLS match in charge, and dropped out of second place in the Eastern Conference as a result.

Anders Dreyer put San Diego ahead on 12 minutes. Lionel Messi levelled on 23 with a direct free kick that struck the post before going in past CJ Dos Santos. Luis Suarez made it 2-1 on 74 with a finish from a tight angle inside the area. Dreyer equalised on 82, and by all accounts he found the home defence exposed on both goals.

Messi's goal was his 20th of the season, which keeps him top of the MLS scorers' list. Suárez has 13. Together they account for 33 of Miami's 63 goals.

The match came four days after González's debut win over Cruz Azul in the Campeones Cup. Miami had gone three league games without a victory before that final, drawing with Atlanta United FC, Chicago Fire and Nashville SC. The run is now four.

Miami and New England Revolution are level on 46 points, and New England FC take second place. Houston and St. Louis are also in the chase for the top positions that matter for the play-offs. Nashville lead the conference with 57 points from 26 matches.

San Diego came in ninth in the Western Conference on 30 points, beaten in their previous three games, the last of them 0-5 at home to Philadelphia Union. Dreyer arrived with 9 goals for the season.

If Miami keep dropping points at this rate, the argument over seeding could be settled by the run-in rather than by the gap Messi and Suárez have built up front.