Inter Miami defeated FC Cincinnati on penalties to go to the US Open Cup final thanks to two late assists from Leo Messi.
Leo Campana expertly headed a Messi cross into the back of the net to cut Cincinnati’s advantage in half after the hour mark and calm the TQL Stadium.
In the seventh minute of stoppage time, Messi made another appearance to find Campana, seemingly following the script that has been written week after week since his debut. This tied the game and forced extra time in the semifinal match.
Just minutes into extra time, the visitors appeared to have turned the tide when Josef Martnez was passed in behind and scored. However, Yuya Kubo’s goal in the second half restored parity and forced a penalty shootout.
After some excellent penalties, Miami’s Benjamin Cremaschi, a youngster, took advantage of a Cincinnati error to advance the visitors to the championship game.
Miami is currently anticipating Real Salt Lake and Houston Dynamo’s victor.
