Kristijan Kahlina's Flat-on-His-Back Save Steals the Show as Charlotte FC and Inter Miami Draw 0-0

Kristijan Kahlina was flat on his back, the ball was rolling toward his goal line, and a crowd of 34,780 at Bank of America Stadium was already inhaling for the groan. Then the Charlotte FC goalkeeper flicked a hand out and swatted it clear, like a man who had rehearsed the whole thing in the mirror.

That 34th-minute scramble was the loudest moment of a Saturday night that never produced a goal. Charlotte FC and Inter Miami CF played to a 0-0 draw, with Kahlina and Miami's Rocco Ríos Novo making eight saves between them and neither attack finding the last inch it needed.

Near-Misses on a Loop

This was not a gentle one. Mateo Silvetti was booked in the sixth minute for a bad foul, and the first half eventually carried eight minutes of added time.

When the ball did move, it kept finding the wrong side of the post. Luis Suárez fired wide from the middle of the box in the 10th minute after a pass from Ian Fray. A minute later, Ashley Westwood took a pass from Liel Abada and drew a low save from Ríos Novo at the bottom right corner. Suárez put a shot over the bar off a corner in the 19th, David Ruíz put one narrowly wide off a Suárez cross in the 21st, and Abada answered almost immediately, sending a shot just wide after a fast break and a headed pass from Idan Toklomati.

Then came the 34th minute, which gets its own section below. Charlotte finished the half on the front foot: Harry Toffolo had a shot blocked and Abada forced another Ríos Novo save in the 44th, Pep Biel blasted over from distance, and Toklomati's header in first-half stoppage time drifted just over the crossbar from a Toffolo cross.

Zaha Pushes, Ríos Novo Pushes Back

Wilfried Zaha came out of halftime hunting. He tested Ríos Novo from outside the box within a minute of the restart. Miami's best answer was Sergio Reguilón from range in the 52nd minute, with one effort blocked and the next, off a corner routine, sliding wide of the right post.

The home side's peak arrived in the 63rd. Brandt Bronico nodded a pass into Zaha's path, and the winger hit two shots from the center of the box in quick succession. Ríos Novo stopped the first in the middle of the goal and then stopped the second low at the bottom left corner.

Then the benches took over. Miami sent on Alexander Shaw and Cesar Abadia-Reda in the 68th minute, both making their official MLS debuts, per the club. Charlotte answered with Djibril Diani and Kerwin Vargas, who dragged a shot wide from the right side a minute after coming on. Germán Berterame had Miami's best late look, a 79th-minute header from a Dániel Pintér cross that Kahlina saved. In the fourth minute of stoppage time, Archie Goodwin glanced a header from a Biel set-piece cross just wide to the left. According to Charlotte's match story, Miami head coach Javier Mascherano was ejected in stoppage time, a fitting final note for a scratchy night.

The Turning Point: One Minute, Three Miami Swings

The game's hinge was the 34th minute. Off a Miami corner, Gonzalo Luján headed a Reguilón delivery wide. Reguilón went again, and Fray met the cross from very close range. Charlotte's own account says Kahlina denied the header with his left hand and then, lying on his back, batted the loose ball away before it could roll over the line.

Miami was not done. In that same minute, Silvetti hit a shot from outside the box after a pass from Santiago Morales, and Kahlina saved that one too, low at the bottom left corner. Three Miami attempts inside the same minute on ESPN's clock, zero goals. It was the goalkeeping equivalent of a Dikembe Mutombo finger wag.

Star Watch

Kahlina only had to make three saves, but one was the save of the night by a mile. Ríos Novo made five in what Inter Miami noted was his first start of the season, including both of Zaha's 63rd-minute efforts.

Zaha was Charlotte's most dangerous player all night. He finished with three shots, all on target, which is a great stat line until you remember none went in.

For Miami, this was a showcase for the academy. The club said seven academy products featured, five of them in the starting XI: Noah Allen, Fray, Morales, Ruíz and Pintér. Morales and Pintér were making their first starts for the first team, and offseason signings Reguilón and David Ayala made their official Inter Miami debuts.

"I've known those guys from the start. That's something very positive for the club, the Academy, and the players. We had seven Academy players on the field; they competed and played well away from home. It's an amazing feeling for Inter Miami," Miami assistant coach Javier Morales said.

Suárez, wearing the captain's armband, never got a shot on target in two attempts and was flagged offside twice.

Stats That Matter

• Possession: Miami 55.2 percent, Charlotte 44.8 percent.
• Shots: Charlotte 11 with 5 on target; Miami 10 with 3 on target.
• Saves: Ríos Novo 5, Kahlina 3.
• Crossing: Miami tried 18 crosses and completed 7; Charlotte completed 2 of 13.
• Interceptions: Charlotte 12, Miami 4.

What It Means

Inter Miami moves to 2-1-1 with 7 points, and every one of those games has been on the road: a 3-0 loss at LAFC, a 4-2 win at Orlando City, a 2-1 win at D.C. United and now this. The draw ends a two-game winning run, but it came with a clean sheet. Next up is Wednesday's home leg of a Concacaf Champions Cup Round of 16 series against Nashville SC, after the first leg ended 0-0.

Charlotte sits at 1-2-1 with 5 points after a draw at St. Louis, a 3-0 loss at the LA Galaxy, a 3-1 home win over Austin and this stalemate. The club pointed out that it remains unbeaten at home this season. Red Bull New York visits Bank of America Stadium next weekend.

Closing Take

Goalless draws usually earn a shrug. This one earns a nod to the people in gloves. Kahlina's swat from the turf belongs in a season highlight package, and Ríos Novo turned his first start of the year into a clean sheet. Both teams will want more goals. Neither should be embarrassed by this point.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Club notes and postgame quote from Inter Miami CF (intermiamicf.com) and Charlotte FC (charlottefootballclub.com); Concacaf context from mlssoccer.com.