Inter Miami Advances to Leagues Cup Semifinals Despite Messi Absence, Coach Ejection

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Inter Miami CF advanced to the semifinals of the 2025 Leagues Cup tournament after a dramatic 2-1 win over Tigres UANL on Wednesday night at Chase Stadium.

Despite playing without its captain and star Lionel Messi, who sat out because of an ongoing muscular injury, the 2023 Leagues Cup champion qualified for the next round.

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Miami took an early lead after receiving a penalty for a handball by Tigres defender Javier Aquino inside the box. Luis Suárez stepped up to the spot and nailed the shot past Tigres goalkeeper Nahuel Guzmán.

The Herons then suffered a setback in the first half when Jordi Alba was injured after accidentally clashing with teammate Telasco Segovia. Though the defender played through the injury at first, he limped off the field at halftime and did not return for the second half. The team said his injury will be evaluated in the coming days.

Before the second half, head coach Javier Mascherano received a red card for complaining about the amount of stoppage time played at the end of the first half, forcing him from the sidelines for the rest of the game. Mascherano went directly into the VIP seats above the club bench, and his assistant coach, Leandro Stillitano, took over.

Mascherano won't be able to coach in the semifinals and could be suspended for up to three games for the red card infraction and for communicating with the bench after being sent off.

"It is not clear, what happened at the end of the first half is that the referee added four minutes [of added time] and we ended up playing six or something like that," Miami assistant Javi Morales told media after the game. "So we argued about the time, you are human and you start to talk. It wasn't clear but the referee said Javier [Mascherano] got a red card and that's it.

"We didn't get much information. We were complaining about the added time."

According to tournament rules, a manager who receives a red card can watch the rest of the match from the stands but cannot give any instructions or influence the match. But Mascherano began to voice instructions and yell from the stands before being asked to stop, according to a Leagues Cup press official.

Television footage later showed Mascherano on the phone with assistant coach Lucas Rodriguez Pagano.

As the game progressed, Tigres began to control possession and managed a goal in the 67th minute with a strike from new summer signing -- and Messi's Argentina teammate -- Ángel Correa. But the tie score wouldn't last because a second handball inside the Tigres area earned Inter Miami another penalty.

Again, Suárez stepped up to score in the 89th minute.

A late header from Tigres' Edgar Lopez ricocheted off both posts as Miami held on for the win.

"After all, it was wild, but I think we played a very good first half," Morales added. "We played in the game that we wanted. We scored a goal, we made chances. We found a way to keep fighting and win."

Inter Miami will next face Orlando City, which defeated Toluca 6-5 on penalty kicks after a scoreless 90 minutes.