CHARLOTTE — Lionel Messi didn’t make the trip to Charlotte. Rodrigo de Paul didn’t either. Dayne St. Clair, German Berterame, and Telasco Segovia did, but they were all on the bench. Those decisions said it all about Inter Miami’s mindset. With the second leg of their CONCACAF Champions Cup battle against Nashville SC on the horizon, manager Javier Mascherano opted to prioritize.

It was a treat for them, then, that they still left Bank of America Stadium with a point against a good Charlotte FC team. A team of young stars, newcomers, and of course, Luis Suarez had their moments, and they did enough to earn a draw that, despite the rotation, could have been a win.

Saturday’s match finished scoreless, with both teams earning their first clean sheets of the young MLS season. There were chances for either side, but also two very good goalkeeper performances as Rocco Rios Novo and Kristijan Kahlina largely set the tone. The two combined for eight saves on the day, several of which were spectacular.

The match was tense, though. Wilfried Zaha, Charlotte FC’s star, suffered as many fouls as usual. Suarez, too, lived up to his reputation, emerging at the center of several flashpoints. Mascherano, too, had his own moment as he was sent off in the game’s final moments, much to the delight of the local crowd. Inter Miami assistant coach Javier Morales believes the officiating crew was too hasty with the red card. 

“Javier, he was talking to one of the players. He was a little bit outside the box. The referee was too sensitive,” Morales explained. “When you play this kind of game, we’re playing away with a lot of young kids in the game, you need to coach. Javier was coaching with a lot of energy on the sideline.”

By and large, though, Mascherano will have his own reasons to be delighted, outside of the ejection. Saturday produced a good point, one which also set up Miami for a big game on Wednesday in continental competition.

GOAL rates Inter Miami’s players from Bank of America Stadium…