Cavalier host Inter Miami, Alajuelense welcome Pumas to close out Round of 16

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·12 Maret 2025

Cavalier host Inter Miami, Alajuelense welcome Pumas to close out Round of 16

MIAMI — The 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup continues on Thursday with two second leg matches to conclude the Round of 16.

Cavalier FC will open the evening hoping to overturn a 2-nil deficit against Inter Miami CF. LD Alajuelense will also seek to come back from its own 2-nil defeat in the first leg versus Pumas UNAM.

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The winners on aggregate will advance to the quarterfinals. Away goals serve as the primary tiebreaker. If necessary, extra time and a penalty shootout will decide the winner.

Cavalier FC vs. Inter Miami CF

Cavalier FC hosts Inter Miami CF at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica.

Inter Miami won the first leg 2-nil last Thursday. Goals by attackers Tadeo Allende and Luis Suárez, both of whom scored in Inter Miami’s past two Concacaf Champions Cup meetings, led the Herons to victory. Goalkeeper Óscar Ustari registered his second clean sheet of the campaign and led the club to its first clean sheet at home in CCC action.

Inter Miami will aim to defend its current lead to secure a place in the quarterfinals for the first time. Cavalier will look to get its attack firing to complete a comeback after recording only one shot on target in the first leg.

The winner of this series will play Columbus Crew or Los Angeles FC in the next round.

Data for the second leg match

· This marks the fourth series between MLS and Jamaican clubs, with the previous three all resulting in advancement for the North American teams (D.C. United over Harbour View in the 2005 and 2008 quarterfinals, and FC Cincinnati over Cavalier in the 2024 First Round). MLS teams have remained unbeaten in Jamaica in their last five matches (3W-2D). Inter Miami will be only the second MLS team in history to close out a two-legged series as the visiting team in Jamaica, following D.C. United’s 2-1 away win over Harbour View in the 2004/05 quarterfinals.
· This will be the fifth time a Jamaican club hosts the second leg of a two-legged series. So far, they have recorded three wins and one loss, but no Caribbean club has ever advanced when closing out a home-and-away series at home. There have been four eliminations in these situations (Santos Kingston vs. Transvaal (SUR) in the 1975 Caribbean Second Round, Harbour View vs. Etoile (HAI) in the 1987 Caribbean First Round, FC Reno vs. Police Force (TRI) in the 1991 Caribbean First Round, and Harbour View vs. D.C. United (USA) in the 2004/05 quarterfinals).
· Cavalier FC is now the second Jamaican club to fail to score a goal in Concacaf Champions Cup history, alongside Arnett Gardens (1979 and 2003). Additionally, Cavalier joins Portmore United FC (2006 and 2020) as the only Jamaican clubs to have lost all their matches in tournament history.

LD Alajuelense vs. Pumas UNAM

LD Alajuelense Welcome Pumas UNAM to Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto in Alajuela, Costa Rica.

Pumas won the first leg 2-nil with Robert Ergas and Rogelio Funes Mori on target. The match marked a second consecutive clean sheet for goalkeeper Álex Padilla. The Auriazules aim to extend their positive record against Central American opposition to win the series. The Mexican side boasts a record of 11 wins, four draws, and four losses since the 2008/09 campaign.

Alajuelense will look to rally behind the support of its home fans and advance to the quarterfinals stage for the first time since the 2014/15 edition.

The winner of this series will play CF Monterrey or Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the quarterfinals.

Data for the second leg match

· Pumas will play its fourth match in Costa Rica, where it has never won (2D-1L). The club has played two home-and-away series (excluding finals) and managed to advance despite not winning the away leg (against CS Herediano in the 1989 Fourth Round and against Saprissa in the 2022 Round of 16). Its only loss came in the first leg of the 2004/05 Final, a 2-0 defeat to Saprissa, with goals from Christian Bolaños and Gabriel Badilla. Saprissa went on to win the title in that edition despite a 2-1 loss in Mexico.
· LD Alajuelense reached 140 matches in Concacaf Champions Cup history, holding a record of 69 wins, 25 draws, and 46 losses, with 230 goals scored and 157 conceded. Since the 1999 edition, its all-time leading scorer is Jonathan McDonald, with six goals.
· This was LD Alajuelense’s third consecutive loss in a first-leg away match against a Mexican club. In this scenario, its record stands at one advancement (against U.A.G. in the 1995 North & Central America Group 1 Third Round) and one elimination (against CF América in the 2002/03 quarterfinals). It was also the second consecutive time Alajuelense failed to score in such matches.
· At home in Costa Rica, LD Alajuelense has played 13 matches against Mexican clubs (7W-3D-3L) but has won just one of its last three (1W-1D-1L). When closing out a home-and-away series at home against Mexican clubs, Alajuelense has played nine series, advancing only three times (against Tecos in 1995, CF América in 2002, and CF Monterrey in 2003/04). The last two series in which Alajuelense hosted the second leg ended in a way-team victories and eliminations for the Costa Rican side (1-2 against CF América in the 2005/06 semifinals and 0-1 against Toluca in the 2013/14 semifinals).