Lionel Messi returned and Inter Miami smiled. After a rather disconnected first half, the Argentine star scored two goals and, supported by a fantastic Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba, sealed the pass to the final of the Leagues Cup.
The Purple and Gold turned Marco Pasalic’s opening goal around in the second half. Three goals, the first of which came from a penalty that led to a double yellow card for an opposing player, sealed the victory.
Messi’s presence or absence in the match, having missed four games since his injury on August 2 against Necaxa, had been the main question mark of the night.
But the Argentine partially dispelled the doubt when he arrived on the field in his shorts, and completely when he came on to warm up, albeit with a knee brace on his left leg, the opposite of the one that forced him to retire after being substituted almost a month ago.
The duel between the two Florida neighbors started off hot, and it took just 20 minutes for the referee to show the first two yellow cards to two Orlando City players for a slap in the face of Luis Suarez and a tackle from behind on Baltasar Rodriguez.
This tension ignited an Inter Miami, which had started off poorly with Messi disconnected, and grew in the match as the ten-goaler teamed up with Rodrigo De Paul, Suarez and Rodriguez, the novelty in the eleven.
Las Garzas’ clearest chance came from a low pass to the penalty spot by Jordi Alba that left the defense petrified, but in that empty space appeared Maximiliano Falcón, not a striker, and his tame shot ended up in the goalkeeper’s hands.
Orlando City, who had missed a very clear one-on-one with Iván Angulo, made amends on the stroke of halftime when Marco Pasalic received a ball inside the box that should never have gone through the home defense, and after a rebound on his chest that was reviewed by the VAR, he shot the goal of Óscar Ustari, who could not prevent the 0-1.
The script for the second half soon became clearer after the restart, with Inter Miami putting their ten outfield players in the opposition half, while their neighbors to the north relied on long balls seeking the speed of Angulo and Luis Muriel.
Messi worked his magic on two occasions in the opposite area to get rid of the many players in purple who tried to snatch the ball from him, but he could not find the clearance of any teammate or an angle that would allow him to shoot comfortably on goal.
With a quarter of an hour to go, ‘Las Garzas’ found the double prize with a penalty for grabbing Suárez that culminated in David Brekalo being sent off for a second yellow card. Messi took the responsibility, and with a soft but well-placed shot to his right, levelled the semifinals.
Suarez asked for another one a few minutes later for a collision with the rival goalkeeper when he got in front of an aerial ball, but the referee did not see anything punishable. The cross had come from Alba, who carried all of Inter Miami’s danger on the left.
The Spanish full-back then sent in a cross that hit the post, and the next time, in the 88th minute, he combined with Suarez and Messi to give the Argentinian the ball to set up the comeback.
The third goal, again from the left, but this time scored by Telasco Segovia in stoppage time, sealed Miami’s place in next Sunday’s final. Their opponents will be the Seattle Sounders.
Technical specifications:
3. Inter Miami: Óscar Ustari; Ian Fray, Gonzalo Luján (Telasco Segovia, m.73), Maxi Falcón, Jordi Alba; Rodrigo De Paul, Yannick Bright (Tomás Avilés, m.95), Sergio Busquets, Baltasar Rodríguez (Tadeo Allende, m.65); Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez.
Coach: Javier Morales.
Orlando City: Pedro Gallese; Alex Freeman, Rodrigo Schlegel, Robin Jansson, David Brekalo; Marco Pasalic (Adrián Marín), Eduard Atuesta (Joran Gerbert, m.62), César Araujo (Tyrese Spicer, m.90), Iván Angulo (Duncan McGuire, m.90), Martín Ojeda and Luis Muriel (Ramiro Enrique, m.80).
Coach: Óscar Pareja.
Goals: 0-1, minute 45+1: Marco Pasalic. 1-1, minute 77: Lionel Messi. 2-1. 89th minute: Lionel Messi. 92nd minute: Telasco Segovia.
Referee: Walter López, from Guatemala. David Brekalo was sent off with a double yellow card. Yellow cards for Luis Suárez, Sergio Busquets and Lionel Messi for Inter Miami and David Atuesta, Rodrigo Schlegel and César Araujo for Orlando City.
Incidents: Leagues Cup semifinal match played at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale (Florida), according to EFE.
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