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Apr 9, 2025 9:32 pm

CONCACAF Champions Cup: Lionel Messi lifts Inter Miami to semis

los angeles fc, Inter Miami,

Lionel Messi’s second goal of the night, an 84th-minute penalty kick, capped Inter Miami’s 3-1 win over Los Angeles FC on Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., sending the Herons to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup.

Inter Miami won the two-leg, total-goal semifinal series 3-2, rallying after LAFC earned a 1-0 home victory last week.

Los Angeles went up 2-0 on aggregate when Aaron Long scored in the ninth minute, but goals from Messi in the 35th minute and Noah Allen — off a Messi assist — in the 61st leveled the series 2-2.

A video review led to a handball call against Mark Delgado, setting up the decisive penalty kick. Messi calmly kicked the ball into the top right corner.

Early on, a scramble in the Miami penalty area following a corner kick saw the ball fall to Long, who fired in a right-footed volley from 10 yards out.

Messi took a pass near the top of the LAFC 18-yard box, dribbled wide of a defender and knocked home a left-footed shot for his first goal of the night.

After the hour mark, Allen took a pass from Messi outside the Los Angeles penalty area and chipped the ball toward the net. The ball eluded everyone and bounced into the net.

Inter Miami’s opponent in the two-legged semifinal will be either the Vancouver Whitecaps or Pumas UNAM. The latter two teams were set to conclude their quarterfinal series later Wednesday night in Mexico City.

–Field Level Media

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