On Wednesday night, Inter Miami defeated LAFC to go to the Concacaf Champions Cup semi-final, and Lionel Messi was at his very best. In order to advance to the last four, Inter Miami needed to overcome a one-goal deficit going into the match. They succeeded in doing so as Messi led them to a 3-1 triumph that evening and a 3-2 victory overall.
Although Inter Miami would have preferred a quick start, Aaron Long’s goal for the visiting team after just nine minutes made it even more difficult for them to advance. However, Javier Mascherano’s team rallied, as goals from Federico Redondo and Lionel Messi each side of halftime brought the match back to even.
With six minutes left, the hosts were awarded a penalty, and Messi completed the comeback with a flawless shot from the penalty spot. Inter Miami managed to stay strong and secure a spot in the last four.
Lionel Messi Has Cheeky Free-Kick Ruled Out
Chaos ensued following the decision
Messi scored twice that evening, but if he hadn’t had an extremely cheeky free kick disallowed shortly after the interval, it might have been a hat-trick. Inter Miami, who were still behind 1-0 that night and 2-0 overall, were awarded a free kick about 30 yards out, and Messi, who had tied for third place in all-time free kick scoring, snatched the ball right away.
The Argentine attacker chose to take the free-kick fast when Hugo Lloris was still putting up his wall, and his effort took Lloris off guard and ended up in the net. Messi and his teammates believed they had cut the deficit to one, but the goal was disallowed following objections from LAFC staff and players.
Mascherano, who did not hesitate to express his emotions to the officials, did not like that choice. Take a look at the moment below:
Javier Mascherano Praises Lionel Messi Following Victory
Inter Miami’s boss called Messi ‘the soul of the team’
Messi received a lot of praise from Mascherano in his post-match interview. “He’s the soul of this team,” he stated, according to MLSSoccer.com. Without a question. Since he has been my teammate for more than 20 years and I now have to support him in this capacity as coach, I occasionally feel awkward discussing him.
“In the game, he has done everything. As the greatest in history, he continues to lead by example and provide guidance on how to compete. He will always strive for victory and will stop at nothing to achieve it.
In addition, the game is about possessing the skills, which he possesses because he is the greatest of all time, rather than just wanting it. In this final stage, I get to see him prepare and try to support him in continuing to compete and be happy, and I’m just grateful that I was able to play with him for as long as I did.
In the last four, Inter Miami will now play Vancouver Whitecaps FC, a team from Canada. They will play either Cruzl Azul or Tigres UANL in the final on June 1 if they win that match.
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