Columbus Crew 2-1 Inter Miami: Thiare 98th-minute winner stuns Messi and nine-man Herons (full match highlights)

Jamal Thiare came off the bench to score a dramatic 98th-minute winner as Columbus Crew stunned Inter Miami 2-1 at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field. The victory marked Columbus's first MLS win over Miami since August 2022 and kept their playoff hopes alive. Josef Martinez opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 28th minute after VAR intervened, with Casemiro booked for dissent in the build-up. Lionel Messi produced a moment of magic five minutes later, curling a free-kick from an almost impossible angle into the far corner past Patrick Schulte. The goal had an expected goal percentage of just three percent and was Messi's 76th career free-kick goal. Schulte denied Messi again in the 62nd minute with a superb save, tipping his effort over the bar. The match turned decisively in stoppage time when Santiago Morales, who had entered as a late substitute, received two yellow cards within three minutes and was sent off in the 90+6th. With Miami down to ten men, Brais Mendez forced Rocco Rios Novo into a save, and Thiare reacted quickest to lash home the rebound in the 98th minute. Columbus now sits on 29 points in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, while Miami remains third with 46 points but has now gone five league games without a win. Thiare said after the match that he wanted to bring energy and help his team. Can Columbus sustain this momentum in their push for the playoffs.