Inter Miami won at New England with less ball and more on target

Inter Miami took the points in Boston from a side that had the ball more than usual, with two late goals doing the damage.

Inter Miami spent most of this match without the ball, and still won it. New England led after Dániel Gazdag scored in the 53rd minute, but Germán Berterame's goal in the 69th and Lionel Messi's in the 83rd turned the game around. Those two strikes, both in the final third of the match, are what the scoreline is built on.

The possession figures are the first sign that this was not a usual evening for either side. New England had 54% of the ball, against their home average of 49.5%, so they were on the ball more than they normally are. Inter Miami had 46%, well below the 57.7% they average away from home. Possession is simply the share of time a side spends with the ball, and Miami gave up more of it than they are used to.

Chances were a different matter, and here both sides looked close to their normal selves. Expected goals, a rough measure of how good a side's chances were, put Inter Miami at 1.55, a little under their away average of 1.72. New England finished on 1.25, against a home average of 1.34. Both teams took between 13 and 14 shots, close to the league average of 13.1 per side, so volume alone does not explain the result.

Where Miami gained ground was in the quality of their shooting. They forced six efforts on target to New England's three, and eight of their shots came from inside the box. New England did take seven corners to Miami's one, and they had six shots blocked, but corners did not turn into goals. The home side also conceded two, where they usually concede 1.5 at home, and that is the figure that stands out on their side of the ledger.

Messi was the player who settled it. He scored the 83rd-minute goal, set up by Telasco Segovia, and earlier in the game he had supplied the pass for Berterame's equaliser, which is how the 69th-minute strike came about. Gazdag gave New England the lead with his goal after a pass from Ilay Feingold, and he was the only home player to find the net. Casemiro won seven duels for the visitors, more than anyone else on the pitch.

Late in the match, a goal credited to Ian Fray was cancelled by VAR in the 89th minute, which meant Miami's lead stayed where it was. The visitors conceded once, against an away average of 1.5, and kept the scoreline tight after taking the lead. Miami also committed 15 fouls to New England's six, which is a lot of defensive work for a side that spent so much of the game without the ball.

Inter Miami scored two away goals here, below the 2.4 they average on their travels, yet they still came away with the win. New England, meanwhile, went into this game with a home average of 1.8 goals and finished on one. The clearest fact to take from Boston is that a side with less of the ball and fewer chances than usual still found the two goals that mattered.

Player of the matchL. Messi1 goal · 1 assist9.0

G. Berterame1 goal8.2

D. Gazdag1 goal8.1

T. Segovia1 assist7.3