An assist from Lionel Messi and a penalty kick helped Inter Miami advance to the final of the US Open Cup.
Lionel Messi recorded two assists and converted a penalty kick to help Inter Miami come back from two goals down to beat FC Cincinnati 5-4 on penalties and shatter their finals dreams done. Inter Miami looked to be missing out on a thrilling 3-3 draw, but Miami won 5-4 in a thrilling penalty shootout and they defeated FC Cincinnati.
FC Cincinnati took the lead in the 18th minute through Luciano Acosta and seemed to be in control of the match when Brandon Vazquez scored in the second half to make it 2–0.
Messi was held scoreless in the semi-finals for the first time since joining Inter Miami. However, Messi helped the team win in many ways. From the start of the game, Messi felt under pressure by FC Cincinnati. He could not hit short even once. But he helped his team in a very important way.
Leonardo Campana scored in the 68th minute, assisted by Messi on a free kick. .As time ran out, a brilliant pass to Campana in stoppage time equalized the score and pushed the game into overtime.
Joseph Martinez put Inter Miami ahead in the 93rd minute through Benjamin Cremaschi, but FC Cincinnati showed resilience and equalized through Yuya Kubo in the 114th minute.
The tension of the game reached its peak in the 119th minute when Messi took a free kick and the opposition made a brilliant save. With no winner, the match was taken to a penalty shootout. Messi took responsibility and played the penalty kick well. Both teams converted their first four attempts, leading to a photo finish.
And finally, Inter Miami goaltender Drake Callender made a crucial save on FC Cincinnati's fifth inning. Benjamin Cremaschi then made a move to Inter Miami and played for the U.S. Sealed the way to the Open Cup final.
