On Saturday night, Lionel Messi made history when he became the most decorated player in football history. The Leagues Cup might not have been the most exciting trophy of his fantastic career, but it was his 44th, and Inter Miami’s first, and was incredibly impressive nonetheless.
The Argentine took the Leagues Cup Best Player and Top Scorer awards and with his goal in the final, the magician has now scored at least once in every single one of his appearances for Inter Miami.
American goalkeeper Drake Callender, meanwhile, earned Man of the Match honors for his sturdy performance in the final as well as the Leagues Cup Best Goalkeeper award.
This evening, high-flying Inter Miami and Messi are facing Cincinnati in the semi-finals of the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup.
Inter Miami reached the semifinals of the cup by narrowly defeating neighbors Miami FC on penalties in the third round, knocking out Charleston Battery in the Round of 32 and Nashville SC in the Round of 16 in home games at DRV PNK Stadium, and winning away against Birmingham Legion FC in the quarterfinals.
Cincinnati will prove to be more of a challenge for The Herons. Whilst Inter Miami sit at rock bottom of the Eastern Conference of the MLS, Cincinnati are at the top of the pile. They defeated both New York sides on their way to the semi-finals and most recently knocked out the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the quarter-finals.
Cincinnati have a strong side, their key player being a player Messi will be familiar with, Argentine striker Luciano Acosta. He is enjoying a productive season in the MLS, having scored 12 goals in 21 games. If anyone is going to disrupt Inter Miami’s now solid backline, it will be him.
Although Cincinnati have a far superior record, you can’t knock Inter Miami’s chances. Having now won seven games on the bounce, their team looks exciting and unstoppable. With the ex-Barcelona trio of Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, and Lionel Messi all running it back to their prime Barcelona days, the brightly pink-adorned superstars are relentless. Messi has ten goals and an assist in just seven games.
Before Messi joined, Miami managed to score 22 goals in 22 MLS matches. However, since Messi’s arrival, they have netted the same amount in only seven Leagues Cup matches. An incredible transformation.
If Inter Miami win, they will progress to the final in late September and contest the winner of the semifinal clash between the Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake.
For a team that last month had just suffered a 3-0 defeat at Saint Louis City FC and found themselves rock bottom of the Eastern Conference without an MLS win in 11 games without any prospects, even the notion of two trophies in two months is spectacular!
By Nicky Helfgott / @NickyH3lfgott on Twitter
I choose inter Miami as winning the trophy.