Benjamin Cremaschi’s first-half goal was enough for Inter Miami to remain the only undefeated team in MLS after a 1-0 win over the Columbus Crew on Saturday in Cleveland.
Cremaschi scored in the 30th minute and Oscar Ustari made three saves for Miami (5-0-3, 18 points).
The Crew (5-1-3, 18 points) failed to break the franchise record for longest unbeaten streak to start a season. They equaled the eight-match mark of 2010 (6-0-2).
The match was moved some 145 miles north of Columbus because Crew owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam, who also own the NFL Cleveland Browns and their stadium, wanted to capitalize on the presence of Miami megastar Lionel Messi.
As a result, the Crew did not enjoy the distinctive advantage their usual home provides — where they have amassed a 21-4-9 record in their previous 34 MLS regular-season home matches.
While many fans traveled from Columbus, it was no surprise that the pink-clad Messi/Miami fans were almost equal in attendance.
The crowd of 60,614 was short of the 67,431 capacity.
Cremaschi earned his first goal of the season off a transitional buildup that began with Luis Suarez at midfield. He pinged a pass to his right to Marcelo Weigandt. After several dribbles, he sent a crisp service to the middle of the box and Cremaschi finished with a diving header.
A minute earlier, Ustari made a reaction save on a tight shot by Max Arfsten to keep the match scoreless.
Messi nearly made it 2-0 in the first minute of first-half stoppage time, but his 25-yard strike curled wide of the left post.
The Crew came out firing in the second half and almost equalized in the 46th minute, but Ustari came up big again with a stop of Diego Rossi. Six minutes later, Rossi had a clean look but blew a chance for his sixth goal with an attempt well off-target.
The Crew had numerous forays into the final third, including in the fourth minute of stoppage time when Daniel Gazdag stretched for a cross by Andres Herrera and redirected the pass inches outside the left post.
–Field Level Media
