Club World Cup: Lionel Messi's Inter Miami held to a goalless draw by Al Ahly in tournament opener

Time of India

15 hours ago

Inter Miami's Lionel Messi, right, attempts a shot on goal during the Club World Cup group A soccer match between Al Ahly and Inter Miami in Miami, Fla., Saturday, June 14, 2025. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Inter Miami and Al Ahly played to a goalless draw in the opening match of FIFA's new 32-team tournament, with
Lionel Messi
narrowly missing a stoppage-time winner in front of 60,927 fans at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens on Saturday.
Messi's curling shot from 20 yards out in the final minutes was tipped onto the crossbar by Al Ahly goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy, denying Miami the victory.
The Egyptian side had their own opportunity to take the lead when Trezeguet's first-half penalty was saved by Miami's Argentine goalkeeper Oscar Ustari.
El Shenawy made another crucial save in the dying seconds, preventing a header from Maxi Falcon as Miami pressed for a win in the Group A encounter.
The tournament opener proved successful for FIFA, with strong attendance at the 64,000-capacity venue and efficient security measures in place.
Over 10,000 Al Ahly supporters created an energetic atmosphere, arriving early to support their team, which has won the African Champions League 12 times and the Egyptian league 45 times.
The match saw plenty of action despite the lack of goals, with Al Ahly dominating the first half before Miami improved after the break.
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Al Ahly threatened early when Emam Ashour was denied by Ustari after being set up by Trezeguet.
Palestine international Wessam Abou Ali had a goal disallowed for offside and later saw his powerful shot tipped over by Ustari.
The penalty came after Telasco Segovia fouled Zizo, but Trezeguet's weak spot-kick was saved, and he couldn't convert the rebound.
Miami showed more attacking intent in the second half, with Messi's 64th-minute free-kick grazing the post before hitting the side-netting.
"The truth is we leave with the feeling that we could have won it in the second half. Going forward we have to do what we did in the second half, not have any fear, shed whatever baggage we had because when we play like that, we can play even with any team," said Miami's Argentina coach Javier Mascherano.
"It's a game of mistakes. We had a decent amount of chances in the first half to put the game in a different space," said Al Ahly's Spanish coach Jose Riveiro, who took charge of the team specifically for this tournament.
"It was like we were playing in Cairo and that was a surprise for me in my first official match with Al Ahly. To be here in the States and have it like you were playing at home is something that can probably only happen in this club," Riveiro added.
Miami's upcoming matches include facing Porto in Atlanta on Thursday before returning home to play Brazil's Palmeiras on Monday.
The stadium operations showed significant improvement from last year's Copa America final between Argentina and Colombia, which had experienced chaotic scenes with fans breaking into the ground due to entry delays.
The tournament opening proceeded smoothly without any impact from the controversial immigration crackdown by US President Donald Trump's administration on the heavily Hispanic South Florida community.