At Exploria Stadium, Inter Miami and local rivals Orlando City were able to draw 1-1 thanks to strikes from David Ruiz and Duncan McGuire.

Due to physical exhaustion, the Herons were without their star newcomers Lionel Messi, Jordi Alba, and Sergio Busquets during the game. Messi and Alba experienced setbacks to prior injuries in the encounter against Toronto FC on Wednesday night, head coach Gerardo Martino stated earlier this week. Even though the game was started by ex-FC Barcelona players, the two exited the field before the end of the first half.

Martino decided to completely omit Busquets from the list after the player neglected to workout with the team all week.

Even so, Miami maintained their position away from home. The goal-scoring move was started by Leonardo Campana from the right, who then handed the ball to Josef Martinez so that he could try to score. Pedro Gallese, the goalkeeper, made the initial save, but Ruiz pounced on the rebound and blasted the ball into the net to give his team the advantage.

Up until the 67th minute, Orlando tried to tie the score, but Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callendar stopped each attempt. After outnumbering the opposition, McGuire dribbled into the penalty area to create the right-footed shot and bury the ball in the goal.

Before the final horn, both teams had chances to score on offense, but none of those chances resulted in the game-winning goal.

Inter Miami drops to 14th in the Eastern Conference standings with the point, while Orlando maintains their lead in second. For the foreseeable future, the Herons must win every game to be eligible for the MLS playoffs.

Player evaluations for Inter Miami (4-4-2)

GK Drake Callender received a 7/10 for inconsistency. Had a strong first half, making a few stops, but failed to hold up against Orlando’s equalizer.

RB: 6/10 DeAndre Yedlin doesn’t perform well enough on either end. weak defence and average crosses into the box.

CB Tomas Aviles scored a 6/10. Early in the first half, you were fortunate not to receive a red card. Aggressive fouls and stupid errors might have radically altered the outcome.

Serhiy Kryvtsov, CB, scored a 6/10. struggled during his 45 minutes on the field. Clearly Kamal Miller’s backup, Martino decided to switch things up and give Wednesday’s US Open Cup final more attention.

Noah Allen, LB, a 6/10. need additional expertise. makes too many errors as the opponent advances.

David Ruiz scored the game’s first goal.

CM: 7/10 Dixon Arroyo delivered, but the attacking end could have been stronger.

Ben Cremaschi scored a 7 out of 10. Great first half, creating chances while fending off Orlando, but second half saw a sharp fall in intensity. a little hurt before getting off.

CM Robert Taylor: 7 out of 10. After a fantastic match against Toronto FC, the delivery was lacking.

Josef Martinez earned a 7 out of 10 for his contribution to the first goal, although he had more attack-inspiring potential. Feeling continually underwhelmed by his overall performance given his potential.

ST: Leonardo Campana – 6/10 – Unsatisfactory in comparison to prior outings, but he did set up the team’s lone opportunity to score.