Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF can add a second trophy, following up last year's Leagues Cup title with the Supporters' Shield when they head to Lower.com Field and take on Columbus Crew Wednesday night.
How to watch & stream
- Apple TV - MLS Season Pass; FS1, FOX Deportes
When
- Wednesday, Oct. 2 | 7:45 pm ET/4:45 pm PT
Where
- Lower.com Field | Columbus, Ohio
For a third consecutive matchday, the Herons settled for shared points, playing Charlotte FC to a 1-1 draw at Chase Stadium Saturday night. Messi leveled the match with a golazo, his 15th goal of the season, to cancel out Karol Swiderski's opening strike.
This season, Messi has a remarkable 30 goal contributions (15g/15a) in just 1,334 minutes.
Columbus are chasing Miami for the Supporters' Shield, but failed to gain ground on the Herons Saturday, battling D.C. United to a 2-2 draw at Audi Field.
The Crew are eight points behind Miami with a game in hand, and need to avoid defeat at home to keep their Shield hopes alive.
The reigning MLS Cup presented by Audi and Leagues Cup champions have arguably been the continent's best team, playing an attractive possession-based style under manager Wilfried Nancy and with Landon Donovan MLS MVP candidate Cucho Hernández (16g/13a) often shining brighest in the biggest games.
The Herons are looking to snap a three-match winless run and if they do, they will clinch the first Supporters' Shield in the club's history. Inter Miami are unbeaten in their last six (3W-0L-3D) since a Leagues Cup Round-of-16 defeat to Columbus.
In addition to the Shield, Tata Martino's side are still chasing the league's single-season points record of 73, set by the New England Revolution in 2021. But they'll have to be perfect in their final three regular season games, which includes taking all three points in Columbus.
The Herons would love a repeat of the first regular season meeting with the Crew - a 2-1 home win on June 19 that saw Ian Fray and Leo Campana stake the hosts to a two-goal cushion before Cucho pulled Columbus back a goal in the 40th minute.
