Earthquakes battle to 3-3 draw with Messi, Inter Miami at sold out PayPal Park

SAN JOSE Goals galore greeted a sellout crowd that came Wednesday night to see Messi and InterMiami visit the San Jose Earthquakes No Messi did not amount any of the five goals that peppered the nets before halftime He did however assist a nd-minute goal that resulted in a - draw before the fans at PayPal Park Messi twice nearly broke the tie in extra time only to be thwarted by defender Daniel Munie and goalkeeper Daniel When Messi fell to the turf in the th minute in front of the penalty box no foul was called the event resumed and the tie would stand Inter Miami s Lionel Messi gestures after a play against the San Jose Earthquakes during the first half of an MLS soccer match at PayPal Park in San Jose Calif on Wednesday May Ray Chavez Bay Area News Group Two fans were clotheslined by defense guards as they rushed the field at contest s end while Messi headed to confront the leaders over the non-call minutes earlier Earthquakes coach Bride Arena and specific players intervened so Messi would not overreach on his complaints That is a universal language when talking about refs He obviously wasn t happy Arena noted and I craved to make sure he didn t get a red card To get one at the end of the encounter would be ridiculous I yearned to get him out to play the next competition for Miami The Earthquakes - - had won their previous three matches including one in the U S Open Cup Inter Miami - - heads home after an extended road trip that began with Saturday s - loss in Minnesota Each unit scored in Wednesday s opening minutes and seconds for a - eye-opener It was the fifth time in MLS s -year history that two goals have come in the opening three minutes and it s the fastest since We started the contest in the best way because we scored very early then conceded a goal and made a mistake We re making a lot of mistakes Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano stated We need to keep things positive The unit was fighting to the end to try scoring and this is the way By halftime San Jose led - which shouldn t have been too stunning considering they d scored MLS s largest part goals entering Wednesday s matches Nor was it surprising that Messi played a role in a tying goal early in the second half Messi helped Inter Miami pull even at in the nd minute on Allende s second goal Messi produced a secondary assist better known as a hockey assist to the likes of San Jose Sharks legend Joe Thornton who was in the stands Messi eluded defender Dave Romney to pass the ball to Baltasar Rodriguez for an ensuing cross to Allende None of those first-half goals came from Messi despite his tries an th-minute right-footed shot zipped wide of the left post a diving header from the -yard mark that Daniel easily saved in the th-minute and a -yard left-footed free kick that missed wide of the right post as the half expired For the preponderance part we did a good job on Messi Arena disclosed He was threatening throughout the championship and out guys did a good job Seemingly every time Messi touched the ball the crowd reacted in unison more so with cheers than jeers He did not speak with reporters afterward as has been the episode since shortly after his MLS arrival Inter Miami revealed the net first only seconds into the battle on Maximiliano Falcon s header That play started with a corner-kick tap to Messi and as two Earthquakes defenders approached he passed the ball back to Telasco Segovia who hastily touched it back to Jordi Alba for an eventual cross that Falcon met at the goal box Chicho Arango scored San Jose s equalizer minutes later and Falcon contributed it upon passing the ball back to goalkeeper Oscar Ustari A clearing attempt was cut off by Christian Espinoza who slid a centering pass to a wide open Arango for his team-high ninth goal this season one off Tai Baribo s MLS lead San Jose Earthquakes Ian Harkes scores a goal and celebrates with San Jose Earthquakes V tor Costa against Inter Miami CF in the first half at PayPal Park in San Jose Calif on Wednesday May Shae Hammond Bay Area News Group Arango didn t stay much longer with a left-leg injury forcing him out in the st minute for Amahl Pellegrino The Earthquakes went ahead - on rookie Beau Leroux s blast from just beyond the top of the penalty box in the th minute That sequence started with Vitor Costa s centering pass richocheted off Ian Harkes then defender Sergio Busquets to Leroux a San Jose native who humbly commented he merely hit it well on a night he ll forever remember I ve had an actual dream of playing against Messi and that s come true Leroux commented It s definitely a crazy feeling seeing him for the first time and up close and personal I ll remember it the rest of my life It was an honor to share the field with him and all the great players on our company and their squad Miami pulled even in the th minute when Tadeo Allende kicked in a close-range shot past Daniel at the far post It was Messi s pass at midfield that expedited things and it elicited a Messi chant from the crowd after Allende s goal San Jose snuck ahead - just before halftime courtesy of Ian Harkes left-footed shot from atop the penalty box and inside the left post Leroux was credited with the assist on Harkes first goal with the Earthquakes An offside call nullified a go-ahead goal by Espinoza in the nd minute Two minutes later Messi got caught offside on a breakaway attempt while Munie rushed in to steal the ball With twenty minutes to go amid a - duel the concessions stands and notorious north-end bar were empty as eyes were fixated on the championship Several fans chanted Messi s name and Earthquake supports tried to drown out that hum Messi didn t exactly parachute in unnoticed ahead of his first Bay Area battle since a friendly at Candlestick Park between FC Barcelona and Chivas de Guadalajara Hundreds of fans congregated outside Inter Miami s Santana Row hotel miles from PayPal Park to get a glimpse of Messi the previous scant days and he obliged by waving to them from an upper-floor balcony MLS commissioner Don Garber in pregame media session commended what he termed a club question why this competition stayed at San Jose s -seat venue rather than shift it to a larger venue That mentioned Levi s Stadium and Stanford Stadium are undergoing renovation the Oakland Coliseum will host Mexico and Japan in a friendly match Sept I give them a lot of credit They could have easily moved this and had a significantly greater revenue night Garber revealed They put in their stadium to show their fans and future fans what engaging with the Quakes can be Garber noted that he arrived late though still over minutes before kickoff because of traffic issue that he credited to all the vigor and activity People forget this was one of our first soccer-specific stadiums at a time when the model hadn t been proven right Garber added It was crucial to bring this squad back from Houston If not for John and his family there wouldn t be a pro men s band or MLS club here in this region The club has momentum Related Articles Lionel Messi mania descends on San Jose as Earthquakes welcome Inter Miami perhaps the greatest participant ever Can goal-happy Earthquakes outscore Messi and Miami to extend win streak Unique MLS commissioner Garber talks Messi Apple TV deal and John Fisher Messi is back in the Bay Area Will he play against the Quakes Earthquakes beat Rapids on goals from Jones Arango