Lionel Messi scored twice as Inter Miami rallied to defeat Orlando City 3-1 to reach the League Cup final on Wednesday.
After missing two consecutive matches due to a right thigh injury, Messi converted a penalty in the 77th minute to tie Inter at 1-1, then collaborated with Jordi Alba to put the hosts ahead in the 88th.
Telasco Segovia added a third in injury time as Miami advanced to the final of the Leagues Cup, a cross-border competition between Major League Soccer and Mexico’s Liga MX.
Messi’s first season in MLS, 2023, saw Inter win the League Cup.
“We are at a loss for words when it comes to discussing Leo (Messi),” said Javier Morales, the Inter assistant coach who was at the helm as Javier Mascherano watched from the stands, serving a red card suspension.
“He trained only two or three days, and then he played 90 minutes, and the way he played created situations and scored goals.”
Messi, who had played once after returning from injury on August 2, admitted he felt some trepidation.
“I prepared to be in this match because I knew how important it was, against a very tough opponent who had beaten us in both games we faced this year,” he said. “The truth is in the first half I felt a little scared, but in the second I loosened up a bit more.”
Miami will travel to Seattle for Sunday’s final, after the Sounders defeated the reigning MLS Cup champions, Los Angeles Galaxy, 2-0 in California.
Pedro de la Vega scored in the seventh minute and Osaze Rosario in the 57th to lift the Sounders, who held on with 10 men after Nouhou Tolo was sent off in the 83rd for a diving tackle on Gabriel Pec.
The finalists are both guaranteed seats in the 2026 CONCACAF Champions Cup, while the winner of the third-place playoff between Orlando and Los Angeles will also qualify for the regional event.
In a high-energy first half in Fort Lauderdale, Croatia’s Marco Pasalic stunned the crowd at Inter’s Chase Stadium with a goal in first-half extra time.
Luis Muriel snuck a pass into the area, and Maximiliano Falcon’s attempt to clear it resulted in the ball deflecting back to Pasalic, who sent a left-footed shot into the goal.
Inter players appealed, claiming the ball had hit Pasalic’s arm, but VAR confirmed the goal.
Orlando, who had defeated their cross-state rivals twice this season, continued to stymie Inter in the second half.
Luis Suarez forced a stop from Orlando custodian Pedro Gallese, while Messi again threatened in the area only to be surrounded by defenders.
Orlando lost momentum in the 59th minute after Guatemalan referee Walter Lopez denied them a penalty for Sergio Busquets’ foul on Ivan Angulo.
And the momentum swung irrevocably in Miami’s favour in the 74th minute, when replacement Tadeo Allende was fouled in the area.
David Brekalo’s challenge featured a tug on Allende’s jersey, which earned him a second yellow card.
He left as Messi took the penalty, and the Argentine great fired past Gallese into the bottom right corner of the goal.
Eleven minutes later, he scored again, causing wild celebrations.
Orlando coach Oscar Pareja was dissatisfied with the second-half officiating, particularly the second yellow card for Brekalo, which he claimed “wasn’t a yellow”.
However, Morales stated that it was “clear that the defender grabbed Tadeo”, who, according to the coach, could have scored if not held back.
