Football great and Inter Miami captain Lionel Messi assisted twice and converted a penalty kick to lead his side to the U.S. Open Cup final. Riding on Messi’s heroics, Miami took down MLS-leading Cincinnati 5-4 in penalties in the U.S. Open Cup semifinal on August 23, Wednesday. The game started with Cincinnati taking an early lead 2-0 before Messi assisted two goals to Leonardo Campana.
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With it, the score between both the teams reached 2-2. However, soon after it, Josef Martínez scored three minutes into the first extra period, only to get the score tied after Yuya Kubo’s 114th-minute goal. In the penalty shootout, Messi made the first attempt, after which both the teams had perfect four rounds.
Meanwhile, Drake Callender saved the fifth-round kick by Nick Hagglund. Later, Benjamin Cremaschi made his penalty kick to send the Leagues Cup final winners to the US Open Cup final. The Herons would now face the winners of Houston Dynamo, who are coming on the back of a win over Real Salt Lake, in the finale of the tournament. Notably, the summit clash will take place on September 27.
This was the first time Leo Messi remained scoreless after joining Inter Miami in late July. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner scored 10 goals in the first seven games and led his side to the first win in Leagues Cup.
