The road to the final Eastern Conference it was a walk for Inter Miami, that had in Lionel Messi to an exalted, enlightened driver. Leo launched the 4-0 away to Cincinnati with a header goal, from a spike to the floor. Then he dedicated himself to distributing assists to increase the victory figures. One was for Mateo Silvetti, the youth who emerged in Newell’s and from Rosario like him, who has just stood out in the Under 20 World Cup, and two for Tadeo Allende the forward with steps through Godoy Cruz and Celta de Vigo. A victory that the Argentine firm led.
It will be the first Conference final for Messi. Inter awaits a rival, who will emerge from the semifinal between Philadelphia and New York City. If it is the first team, it will be the visitor, and it will act as home team if New York City advances. For the Western Conference, Vancouver Whitecaps is one of the finalists. The other will come out of the Minnesota United vs. San Diego. And on December 5th there is the grand final to consecrate the champion of the MLS season.
In the four play-off matches (three against Nashville and this Sunday against Cincinnati) Messi has six goals and four assists. It will arrive sharp to definition. And with a new partner in attack, because Silvetti’s strength and his criteria for moving in the last 25 meters seem having won the fight against Luis Suárez, which he did not convert in two quarterfinal matches against Nashville and was sidelined in the third due to a suspension.
Highlights from Cincinnati 0 – Inter Miami 4
This Sunday, Suárez went to the bench and entered when the game was already defined. Faced with an open and uncontrolled rival defense, the Uruguayan had an opportunity that did not show him in his best form, with a shot that went several meters wide. In his role as a substitute, Suárez was seen on more than one occasion giving instructions to some of his teammates. A way to contribute from another place.
After the 4-0, Mascherano was asked about his decision to send Suárez to the bench: “On nights like this, what really stands out is the team, not just the starting eleven. It is never easy to leave out a player like Luisand I must say that his management was admirable.”
From the midfield upwards, Javier Mascherano arranged a formation with a majority of Argentine presence. Allende, Rodrigo De Paul and Baltasar Rodríguez appeared in the line of midfielders, while Messi sought to connect with Silvetti.
The categorical victory of Inter Miami extended by one more game the careers of Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, who have already announced that they will retire when the official MLS season ends. Meanwhile, they contributed to this Sunday’s win with a performance that does not reveal a football decline, beyond the fact that in American football they found concessions that were not frequent when they were in the first European level. The end of both their careers depends more on personal and life decisions than on the impossibility of continuing to compete in the soccer americano.
The one who feels that he still has the rope for a long time is Messi, who recently renewed his contract with Inter Miami until 2028 and is preparing for his sixth World Cup, although he still does not dare to confirm it with the resoundingness that his level in the MLS is showing.
During the MLS regular season, Leo added 34 goals in 31 games. In the play-offs he is giving continuity to an unbalanced production. Score and assist. Manage the times of your team and the games. Cincinnati had had an interesting start, there was no hint of collapse in the second half. He had a couple of approaches that found goalkeeper Ríos Novo well positioned, who took the place from Oscar Ustari.
Messi began to cause the break, even a few minutes before his goal, when he slowed down Cincinnati by taking the ball and causing a couple of fouls. It was the prologue to the opening of the scoring, to a blow that did a lot of damage to Cincinnati. Leo broke parity with an intergenerational connection: his 38 years with Silvetti’s 19. Leo’s opening for the kid who likes Newell’s, Among his economic hardships, he transferred in August for 4.2 million euros; Silvetti served the center for Messi’s diving header into the ground.
The second half was a concert of assists from Messi, who although under pressure usually finds shortcuts, with the spaces that Cincinnati gave him he had uninterrupted fun. Two goal passes – one slap, with the left instep – to Allende and another to Silvetti, to return kindness. He also gave an assist to his friend De Paul, who wasted the chance to make it 5-0. “It is a privilege and honor to coach Leo. We already know what he is, he shows it every week. Today was incredible, even for his work without the ball to mark the line of pressure,” Mascherano added.
Messi was there for everything, he even took time after the end to console and give some words of encouragement to Luca Orellano, the kid who emerged in Vélez who entered Cincinnati in the second half, when his team was beginning to be a disaster. An invitation that Messi accepted with a youthful spirit, as if he were a contemporary of Silvetti.
