Luis Suarez netted twice from the penalty spot as Inter Miami battled past Mexico’s Tigres UANL 2-1 in a Leagues Cup quarterfinal on Wednesday, overcoming the absence of Lionel Messi.
Messi, who recently guided Miami to victory over the LA Galaxy, skipped training earlier in the day and sat out the match. “We go with what Messi feels. Today he wasn’t at his best, so we didn’t want to take risks,” assistant coach Javier Morales said.
Suarez opened the scoring after Jordi Alba’s cross struck Tigres defender Javier Aquino’s arm. Ángel Correa leveled with a solo effort before another Aquino handball allowed Suarez to seal the win from the spot. Tigres nearly equalized again when Edgar Lopez’s late header rattled both posts.
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Inter Miami faced drama off the field as Javier Mascherano was shown red before the second half but was later spotted giving instructions by phone — a violation of tournament rules. Morales downplayed the incident.
Adding to Miami’s concerns, Alba limped off early in the second half with a knee knock. “We don’t have the full medical report yet, but he took a hit,” Morales said.
Source: Agency