Lionel Messi did not make the team due to an injury sustained while representing Argentina, thus he watched from the sidelines as Inter Miami CF fell to the Houston Dynamo 2-1 in the U.S. Open Cup final.
Manager Gerardo Martino stated on Tuesday that whether or not his star player would be available will depend on the outcome of the game. Messi was not included on the team sheet when the lineup was made public prior to the championship game at DRV PNK Stadium.
“It was clearly not prudent for him to play, not even for a few minutes,” Martino said after the match. “We couldn’t take the risk.
“But he will surely play again before the end of the season. His participation will be determined game by game based on the medical team’s feedback.”
Jordi Alba, a former teammate of Messi’s at Barcelona, missed the defeat as well due to a personal injury; both players were seen in the stands in casual attire shortly after kickoff.
Houston took full advantage of Miami’s weakness—two of their players were absent—scoring twice in the opening period on a penalty kick by Amine Bassi and a close-range thunderbolt from Griffin Dorsey as the guests dominated.
Miami attempted to force their way back into the game after winning the inaugural Leagues Cup tournament between MLS and Liga MX, but they were unsuccessful and could only muster a late consolation goal from Josef Martinez. This was Miami’s second trophy bid this season after winning the Leagues Cup event.
After winning the U.S. Open Cup in 2018, Houston was the team to add a second one to their trophy cabinet when the game was over.
“Today, I saw a worn-out and tired team,” Martino said. “We were also limited by the injuries, so our performance was affected by those circumstances.”
Long before the gates opened for the Cup final, thousands of supporters arrived in the Fort Lauderdale region late on Wednesday afternoon, many of them sporting Messi shirts in the blue and white of Argentina or the pink of Inter Miami, if only to see the team buses arrive.
But when the buses arrived, Messi wasn’t there, which may have cost some supporters a lot of money in disappointment. Prices for tickets on secondary markets ranged from $145 to over $4,000 just an hour before the game, with links to sales pushed on the team’s social media accounts as recently as Tuesday.
Since his return from Argentina’s international duty, Messi had been in and out of Miami’s lineup due to a leg injury caused by an old scar tissue issue. He did not participate in Miami’s defeat to Atlanta United on September 16. He also attempted to participate in Miami’s 4-0 victory over Toronto FC on September 20 but was forced to leave the game after around 30 minutes.
In the Toronto game, Alba was taken off due to muscle exhaustion just before Messi, and Martino announced after the game that neither would participate in Saturday’s away game against Orlando City. Miami was able to draw that game to maintain their chances of making the MLS Cup playoffs.
Since his arrival in Miami in July as part of a record-breaking agreement, Messi has made a spectacular impression. He has been a part of 16 goals and 11 of them, helping the squad win every game in which he has appeared.
With five games remaining and two games in hand, Miami is five points behind New York City FC, whom they play on Saturday in Major League Soccer, for the final playoff place.
