Inter Miami got their Leagues Cup title defense off to a quick start on Saturday night, thanks to a 2-0 victory over Club Puebla at Chase Stadium.
Although the result was the same; a victory over a LIGA MX opponent, it was in contrast to Miami’s first Leagues Cup match a year ago. On that day, Lionel Messi made his debut and scored a dramatic free-kick winner against Cruz Azul.
Messi finished as the leading scorer for the tournament, leading Miami to the title through a penalty-kick shootout over Nashville SC. It was their first trophy.
This year, Messi observed from the sidelines while nursing an ankle injury he suffered in the Copa América final.
The setback could keep him absent for most, if not all, of Inter Miami’s Leagues Cup run.
However, Messi enjoyed another spectacular performance from a team that keeps winning without the best player in the world.
“We have the obligation of fighting for both tournaments [MLS Cup and Leagues Cup],” head coach Tata Martino said in Spanish after the match. “But that’s not because we won Leagues Cup last season, but because these tournaments are not played at the same time. … There’s no need for us to choose between one or the other.”
Inter Miami competed in the Leagues Cup as leaders for the Supporters’ Shield race, five points ahead of FC Cincinnati. With impressive depth, they push for silverware in multiple competitions.
Matias Rojas helped Miami begin their feat with a powerful left-footed strike against Puebla. Before Luis Suárez capped them by tapping in a wonderful service from former Barcelona teammate Jodi Alba. Julian Gresse delivered a sublime pass opening the sequence on the latter goal.
“We are a team that goes out to the pitch and establishes things during the first minutes of the game, that’s important to start winning,” Suárez told reporters after the match. “Puebla found themselves in a difficult situation, being down on the scoreboard. And we could finish it during the second half.”
In the match with Club Puebla, David Martinez made his debut at center back after joining Inter Miami on loan from Argentine giant River Plate. While goalkeeper CJ dos Santos made two saves to earn Miami its clean sheet, with Santos substituting for Drake Callender.
“We have two very good goalkeepers and this was a very good opportunity to give CJ a chance,” Martino said. “Now, our point of view of this tournament is different from the point of view we had a year ago. A year ago we were amongst the last in the league, but now we are in first place. We don’t find the need to take further precautions. We played a week ago, and we’ll play again in a week’s time. This is a very demanding tournament that wears off players a lot.”
Inter Miami will face Tigers UNAL next on August 3rd, as they play for a spot in the knockout stage. The match will hold at NRG Stadium in Houston (8 pm ET | MLS Season Pass).
“Inter have already won this, they have the experience,” Suárez said. “This is a matter of fighting until the end. Some like this, some may not, but we need to get used to it. Our obligation is to work.”
