Without Messi, Inter Miami reach Leagues Cup semi-finals | OneFootball

Without Messi, Javier Mascherano's cast won the duel 2 to 1 and advanced to the next phase of the competition.

Without Lionel Messi, but with an unyielding Luis Suárez from the penalty spot. Inter Miami hosted Tigres for the quarterfinals of the Leagues Cup and achieved a great 2-1 victory with a double from the Gunman, taking advantage of two handballs in the box by the same player -Aquino- and thus made it to the semifinals of the tournament they won in 2023. Now they await their opponent: Toluca or Orlando City, at Chase Stadium.

The first news for Inter Miami on this Leagues Cup Wednesday was not the best: Messi, still not 100% physically, did not even make it to the bench. With that scenario, the home team had to rely on a collective game to counteract a Mexican team that arrived in Miami with ambition. And they did, especially in the first half, dominating every action of the game.

In the first good triangulation, Inter Miami found a hand. And not because it was a help. It was a literal hand from Aquino, who touched it after a feint by Jordi Alba and penalty. Luis Suárez opened his foot and made it 1-0 at the 23′ mark. The difference was not greater for the home team because Purata saved Allende's 2-0 and a shot from Alba went close. And Tigres? Little to nothing. Just an attempt by Lainez and zero shots on goal in the first half.

The second half was a different game, which started complicated for Inter Miami, with a red card for Mascherano, Alba leaving due to a knee injury (it happened in the first half, but he held on and could not continue) and the equalizer from Ángel Correa, nailing the 1-1 with a good individual play at the 67′ mark. It seemed that Tigres was going to devour a battered home team and even Ustari saved them, taking out a shot from Correa. That's when Inter Miami woke up again.

Same goal formula for the win: handball by Aquino, reviewed by VAR that the referee did not see at first, and goal by Suárez, for the 2-1 at the 89′ mark, with relief from the Gunman, players and fans, with Messi being one more from his box. But something was missing: an angel for Inter Miami. Before the end, already with time up, Correa headed the ball and it hit both posts, bouncing on the line. Suffering and fulfilling, Inter Miami is in the semis.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.