FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Columbus Crew (7-2-7) visit Inter Miami CF (7-3-5) on Saturday as both teams try to keep pace with the leaders atop the MLS Eastern Conference.
The Crew are tied for third place with Nashville with 28 points, while Inter Miami’s 26 points have them in sixth.
Despite being outperformed from a statistical standpoint, Miami earned a 1-0 defeat of Columbus back in April in the teams’ first meeting of the season. If they play again this year, it would be in the playoffs.
Miami’s Lionel Messi and Columbus’ Diego Rossi lead their teams with eight goals each; they are tied for seventh among MLS goal scorers.
Each team has several players on its injured list. Miami will be without David Ruiz, Baltasar Rodriguez and Drake Callender. For Columbus, Patrick Schulte, Sean Zawadzki Mohamed Farsi and Rudy Camacho are out.
Kickoff at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
The Crew are off until June 14 when they welcome Vancouver to Lower.com Field. That match begins a stretch of three straight at home, the club’s only three matches in June.
