Lionel Messi’s first trip to Mexico for an official match did not end well.
Monterrey defeated Inter Miami 3-1 on Wednesday evening in the second leg of the quarter-finals of the Concacaf Champions Cup, Concacaf’s equivalent of the Champions League. Goals from Brandon Vazquez, Germán Berterame and Jesús Gallardo were enough to eliminate Miami 5-2 on aggregate.
Diego Gómez scored Miami’s only goal in the 85th minute. Messi started the match but only had one chance in the first half.
“As a coach I am happy to take out a great team. Gerardo [Martino] and Leo [Messi] are a great coach and player recognized worldwide,” said Monterrey coach Fernando Ortiz. “We have the satisfaction of winning the series.”
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Before the quarter-final, Ortiz said he was confident in his team’s talents but worried the referees could be influenced by Messi’s presence.
“I said we were going to beat them, not because of any disrespect to Miami, just because I thought my players would understand what had to be done,” Ortiz said. “For me, Leo is the best player of all time. I didn’t mean to offend anyone, I just gave an honest opinion.”
Monterrey’s assistant coach, Nico Sánchez, apologized earlier this week after audio was leaked in which he called Messi a “possessed dwarf” and said Messi had “the face of the devil” after an altercation in the first leg in Miami.
Messi, who played two friendlies in Mexico in 2011 and one in 2006, missed the chance to lead Miami to the tournament’s first semi-final.
“Today’s loss takes away the illusion that we must continue to make progress in this competition,” said Miami Coach Gerardo Martino.
Messi won the Leagues Cup last summer, trying to win his second tournament since signing for Miami a year ago.
“We fought well in the first match against Monterrey and in this match we did that until Berterame’s goal, then the series ended,” Martino said.
Messi returned from a hamstring injury that had sidelined him since March 13 and played in the second half of an MLS match in Colorado last weekend, scoring once in a 2-2 draw.
Monterrey, who have the highest payroll in the Mexican league, will face the Columbus Crew of the MLS in one of the semi-finals. Club América, the reigning Liga MX champions, will play Pachuca in the other. CF Pachuca defeated Costa Rican club CS Herediano 2-1 on Wednesday to qualify.
Monterrey will be looking to advance to their first final since winning their fifth Concacaf title in 2021.
The first leg between Monterrey and Miami ended in a heated argument after the MLS team complained about the number of tickets they received. Inter Miami ended the second leg with 10 men after Jordi Alba was shown a red card in the 78th minute.
Despite falling in the quarter-finals, Miami is still eligible to participate in the 2025 Club World Cup. The expanded version of the competition, which includes the winners of continental titles from Europe, Asia, Africa and North and Central Bringing America Together will be played in the US.
The updated format also includes teams that qualified based on a new FIFA points system and one wildcard team from the US as hosts, although FIFA has yet to say how the spot will be allocated. “Further details [will be] be provided in due course,” FIFA said in a statement in December 2023.