Martino blames ref as Miami suffers Shield setback

Inter Miami head coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino claimed the match against New York City FC at Yankee Stadium “lacked a good referee” after a heated contest resulted in a 1-1 draw at Yankee Stadium Saturday.

Inter Miami players earned five of the nine yellow cards throughout the game, while a Miami assistant coach received an instant red card and expulsion from the bench in the second half. Noah Allen and Federico Redondo will consequently miss the team’s next match against Charlotte FC on Sept. 28 due yellow card accumulation.

“The team didn’t lack anything, but the match lacked a good referee,” Martino said in his post-game news conference.

Martino was particularly aggrieved at referee Jon Freemon for failing to call a foul when Inter Miami defender Yannick Bright went to ground in the box before NYCFC midfielder James Sands headed in a last-minute equalizer.

“We had a good game, we should’ve won,” he added. “If the referee would’ve called the foul committed against Yannick Bright, we would’ve won the game 1-0.”

Miami (19-4-7) didn’t get on the board until the 75th minute when Leo Campana, a late entry to the game, finished a play started by Lionel Messi. Messi carried the ball forward before finding Jordi Alba to his left streaking inside the box and he tapped it across to a wide-open Campana.

New York (11-11-8) got a corner kick in the fifth minute of stoppage time and Santiago Rodríguez sent a perfect feed into the box where Sands was wide open at the 6-yard line to head the ball just inside the near post.

The game drew 44,738 to Yankee Stadium, the second highest total in NYCFC history. The two clubs played to 1-1 draw in Miami on March 30.

Despite the consecutive draws against Atlanta United and New York City, Inter Miami continue to lead the Eastern Conference and Supporters’ Shield standings with 64 points in 30 games.

The Herons must record eight points from the final four matches to secure the Supporters’ Shield, and 10 points to break the Major League Soccer record for most points earned during a single season. The New England Revolution currently hold the league record after managing 73 points in 2021.

Inter Miami returns to action next Saturday when hosting Charlotte FC at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.