Tag: U.S. Open Cup

Houston Dynamo get a shot at Messi, Inter Miami in 2023 U.S. Open Cup final

Amine Bassi one-upped Messi’s two assists with three of his own

If Lionel Messi wants another trophy with Inter Miami, he’s going to have to mess with Texas.

Messi and Inter Miami will take on the Houston Dynamo in the U.S. Open Cup final, which will take place on September 27 at DRV PNK Stadium.

The Dynamo emerged with a 3-1 extra-time victory after largely dominating a scrappy, tense U.S. Open Cup semifinal with 10-man Real Salt Lake.

Houston will probably want to send a thank-you note to Miami. As the Herons already claimed a CONCACAF Champions Cup place by winning the Leagues Cup, the Dynamo will now follow suit. Miami’s wild penalty kick win over FC Cincinnati means that the Dynamo qualified for continental competition simply by making the final.

The Dynamo certainly seemed to be cruising towards a date with Messi and Miami, capping a dominant first half off with Héctor Herrera’s easy finish after a disastrous giveaway from RSL’s Andrew Brody fell to Amine Bassi (remember that name).

Corey Baird seemed to score an even scrappier goal with what would have been the final kick of the first half, but referee Lukasz Szpala (after a VAR review) found that Baird had been offside earlier in the sequence.

RSL was struggling to offer much of anything, yet stunningly equalized when Anderson Julio leaped up to power a 64th minute header home.

Despite the goal, Houston was all over the visitors, only to find a late winner elusive. That meant extra time on a typically infernal August night in Houston, but the Dynamo’s control of the match meant the hosts had more gas left in the tank.

All Houston needed was someone to put it all together, and Adalberto Carrasquilla seized the moment. The Panama winger took a dish from Bassi before driving into the area to score the eventual winner.

Houston continued to pour it on, eventually finishing the match with 30 shot attempts. RSL, meanwhile, melted down. Center back Brayan Vera was given a second yellow card (later converted to a straight red by VAR) for swiping out at Luís Caicedo, and then appeared to strike Bassi on his way off the field to boot.

Once that minor melee finished up, Bassi had the last laugh, getting his third assist of the night as Caicedo put an exclamation point on Houston’s win.

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Messi, Inter Miami return from the dead to down FC Cincinnati in US Open Cup semifinal

Messi might actually be unstoppable

The best team in MLS, who enter the game unbeaten at home, take a 2-0 lead. For anyone else, that’s a lost cause. Wrap it up, go home, save your legs for another day.

For Lionel Messi and Inter Miami? It’s all just stage dressing for a stunning drama.

Messi produced two surgically precise assists, one of which came eight minutes into second-half stoppage time, to spark a wild comeback that saw the Herons advance to the U.S. Open Cup final on penalties following a 3-3 draw with FC Cincinnati.

Miami will host the Houston Dynamo, 3-1 winners over Real Salt Lake in the night’s other semifinal, in September 27’s final.

If anyone ever manages to actually beat this post-Messi Miami side, luck will have to be on their side. It was certainly in Cincinnati’s favor as they took an 18th minute lead on an absolutely bizarre sequence.

A misplaced Luciano Acosta pass pinballed off of multiple Miami players, looping up for Aaron Boupendza to flick it on. Cincinnati’s Argentine No. 10, with some help from an yet another extremely generous bounce off of Kamal Miller, saw his shot kiss the post and trickle just over the line.

Boupendza thought he’d doubled the lead just two minutes later after chasing down Ian Murphy’s long ball and lobbing Drake Callender, but the goal was chalked off as the Gabon striker was two strides offside.

For Miami, it was the team’s first deficit with Messi as a starter, and Gerardo “Tata” Martino’s halftime changes were undone by a second goal seven minutes into the second half. This time, it was clinical counter-attacking work, with Brandon Vazquez finishing off a raid forward with a powerful low strike.

Messi was getting very little in terms of options or time, but as he has shown the entire world for nearly two decades, all it takes is one touch.

Miami won a set piece out on the left, and despite Cincinnati having a marked size advantage inside the box, the Argentina legend’s driven delivery couldn’t have been more perfect for Leo Campana.

Cincinnati seemed to have an ideal response, but as substitute Yuya Kubo wheeled away celebrating a point-blank finish following a set piece, the bad news arrived: Kubo had handled the ball before finishing, and Miami stayed afloat.

Martino was at this point throwing the kitchen sink at Cincinnati. Josef Martínez and U-22 Initiative playmaker Facundo Farías came in alongside Messi, and Messi’s new bestie Robert Taylor was deployed as an unorthodox right back.

On this night, though, it just wasn’t happening. In fact, Cincinnati goalkeeper Alec Kann didn’t even have much work outside of headers from Messi set piece deliveries.

And yet, even if you scrolled immediately to this line of the article, you already know what’s coming.

With just seconds left in the eight minutes of stoppage time given by referee Joe Dickerson, Messi found himself left of center. For any other player, it’s a prayer of a ball to the back post. For Messi, it was as easy as handing the ball to Campana from a foot away, and the No. 9 once again just had to guide the ball past Kann.

TQL Stadium was stunned, and Cincinnati was in trouble. Head coach Pat Noonan had pulled Acosta, Vazquez, and Boupendza while protecting what seemed like a secure lead.

Meanwhile Miami still had Messi, but didn’t even need him to complete a stunning takeover of the game. Homegrown midfielder Benjamin Cremaschi delivered the goods instead, playing a pass Messi would be proud of to set Martínez up for an ice-cold finish.

Santiago Arias cracked a shot off the bar for Cincinnati, but the luck the home side had early on had by now vanished.

The script said it was all over for Cincinnati without their star attackers, but Yuya Kubo — a former Designated Player attacker who has become over the last two seasons a Swiss Army Knife off the bench — somehow squeezed an equalizer home in the 114th minute.

Both sides exchanged four flawless rounds of penalty kicks, including a casual take from Messi. However, in round five Cincinnati blinked, with Nick Hagglund’s poor spot kick saved by Callender.

Cremaschi did the honors once again, driving his effort home to put Miami in a second final since the club went out and signed the best player to ever kick a ball.

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How to watch Inter Miami vs. FC Cincinnati: Messi starts hunt for second title

Just a month after his arrival, Messi is already close to a second trophy in North America

Just days after winning his first trophy with Inter Miami, Lionel Messi is already just two wins away from a second.

Messi, who helped Inter Miami win the Leagues Cup via a penalty shootout victory over Nashville SC in Saturday’s final, now moves onto another cup competition. FC Cincinnati awaits Inter Miami on Wednesday in the U.S. Open Cup semifinal.

Messi, along with ex-Barcelona teammates Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, will jump into Open Cup play after Inter Miami reached the last four prior to the trio’s arrival.

In FC Cincinnati, Inter Miami will face a strong, but wounded opponent.

[afflinkbutton text=”Watch FC Cincinnati vs. Inter Miami on Paramount+” link=”https://paramountplus.qflm.net/nLoJER”]

FC Cincinnati has the best record in MLS, but their return to league play over the weekend did not go to plan.

The Columbus Crew are no slouch, but thrashing their “Hell Is Real” derby rivals 3-0 was not expected on Sunday. Not to mention, the Orange and Blue were knocked out by Nashville SC in the Leagues Cup round of 32 prior to that.

A betting man would guess FC Cincinnati regroups and brings a better game against Inter Miami. But enough to hand Messi & Co. their first defeat? That may be a hard wager to place.

Here is everything you need to know to catch all the action:

Inter Miami vs. FC Cincinnati (U.S. Open Cup)

  • When: Wednesday, August 23
  • Where: TQL Stadium (Cincinnati)
  • Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
  • Channel/streaming: Paramount+

Leagues Cup Starting Lineups

Inter Miami possible lineup:
Callender, Yedlin, Miller, Kryvtsov, Alba, Arroyo, Busquets, Cremaschi, Messi, Martinez, Taylor

FC Cincinnati possible lineup:
Celentano, Gaddis, Miazga, Hagglund, Arias, Moreno, Nwobodo, Powell, Acosta, Vazquez, Boupendza

[afflinkbutton text=”Watch Messi and Inter Miami on Paramount+” link=”https://paramountplus.qflm.net/nLoJER”]

Martino: Messi will rest eventually, but not in Open Cup semifinal

The Inter Miami star has played the full 90 in five consecutive matches

Lionel Messi has been playing a lot of soccer recently.

By virtue of his incredible Leagues Cup success, Messi has now played seven games within his first month with Inter Miami. He has started all but one of those games, and has gone the full 90 in his past five.

The most recent of those outings came in Saturday’s Leagues Cup final against Nashville SC. Like every other game he’s played for the Herons so far, Messi scored and his team won.

After lifting the Leagues Cup, Inter Miami will now have the chance to clinch a double with just two more victories in the U.S. Open Cup. On Wednesday, Messi and Co. will travel to Ohio to face FC Cincinnati in the semifinal.

Speaking to the media on Monday, Inter Miami head coach Tata Martino said that he would have to rest the 36-year-old Messi at some point, but with another trophy on the line, Wednesday won’t be the time to do so.

“We said that at some point he would have to rest because of the load of minutes played,” Martino said. “Clearly, Wednesday is not going to be that day. If he does not tell me he wants to rest, he will continue to play.”

The winner the Inter Miami-Cincinnati semifinal will face either Real Salt Lake or Houston in the final on September 27.

Messi, who has now scored 10 goals in seven games with Inter Miami, has yet to play in any competition outside of the Leagues Cup. After he makes his Open Cup debut on Wednesday, he is set to play in his first MLS match on Saturday when Inter Miami faces the New York Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena.

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U.S. Open Cup 2023 quarterfinals: Streaming info, schedule and results

It’s crunch time in this year’s Open Cup

The U.S. Open Cup has hit the quarterfinal stage, with the final eight comprised of one clear favorite, two big underdogs from the USL Championship, and five MLS sides who are looking at the tournament as their best path to a trophy in 2023.

Supporters’ Shield favorites FC Cincinnati will play host to one of the underdogs, as the Pittsburgh Riverhounds looking to make it three straight upsets over top-flight opposition.

The other USL Championship side in the mix is Birmingham Legion FC, who have much better upset hopes as they host Inter Miami. That’s the same Inter Miami that just fired Phil Neville and then lost over the weekend thanks to one of the strangest goals MLS will see this year.

The other two matches feature MLS teams that are leaning heavily on the Open Cup to give their season some life. On Tuesday, the Chicago Fire will host the Houston Dynamo with both teams sitting outside the playoff picture in MLS. One day later, Real Salt Lake (one point ahead of Houston, and thus just barely holding a playoff spot in the West) will for the second time in six days face the desperate LA Galaxy.

Here are all of the quarterfinal match-ups (home teams listed first, winners listed in bold as the tournament unfolds):

Tuesday, June 6

  • FC Cincinnati 3-1 Pittsburgh Riverhounds
  • Chicago Fire 1-4 Houston Dynamo

Wednesday, June 7

  • Birmingham Legion FC 0-1 Inter Miami
  • Real Salt Lake 3-2 LA Galaxy

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2023 U.S. Open Cup round of 16: Streaming info, schedule and results

El Tráfico highlights an intriguing set of last-16 clashes

The U.S. Open Cup returns, with round of 16 matches featuring two of MLS’s most intense rivalries and the possibility of more upsets adding intrigue.

Plenty of headlines will be generated by the latest edition of El Tráfico, with Los Angeles FC hosting the LA Galaxy on Tuesday night. For a desperate Galaxy team, the Open Cup may be their one real chance at salvaging a season that has spiraled out of control, while their city rival is looking to use 2023 to underline their “we’re here to win everything” ambitions.

Wednesday will see the Rocky Mountain Cup add another chapter, with the Colorado Rapids hosting Real Salt Lake. It’s a regional rivalry that nearly always delivers a spicy game, and it won’t be the only game with the possibility of high drama. Both of the remaining lower-division teams left in the tournament will host MLS opposition, with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds welcoming the Columbus Crew and Birmingham Legion facing Charlotte FC.

Here are all of the round of 16 match-ups (home teams listed first, winners listed in bold as the tournament unfolds):

Tuesday, May 23

  • Inter Miami 2-1 Nashville SC
  • New York Red Bulls 1-1 (AET) FC Cincinnati (FC Cincinnati advances 5-3 on penalties)
  • Houston Dynamo 4-0 Minnesota United
  • Los Angeles FC 0-2 LA Galaxy

Wednesday, May 24

  • Pittsburgh Riverhounds 1-0 Columbus Crew
  • Birmingham Legion FC 1-0 Charlotte FC
  • Austin FC 0-2 Chicago Fire
  • Colorado Rapids 0-1 Real Salt Lake

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U.S. Open Cup shock as Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Birmingham Legion both stun MLS foes

What’s better than one cupset? Two cupsets!

Wednesday night’s U.S. Open Cup fixtures couldn’t have gone better for the USL Championship, or for upset-loving neutrals.

The last two remaining lower-division teams in the tournament both defeated MLS opposition. First, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds shocked the Columbus Crew 1-0 at Highmark Stadium. Just an hour later, Birmingham Legion matched that scoreline in eliminating 10-man Charlotte FC.

That makes it three Open Cup tournaments in a row where at least two lower-division teams have advanced to the quarterfinal round. St. Louis FC and New Mexico United made that run in 2019, while last year Union Omaha of USL League One went to the quarterfinals. Sacramento Republic FC went even further, going to the final before falling to Orlando City. The Open Cup wasn’t held in 2020 or 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In Pittsburgh, the Riverhounds showed the organization that has long been their hallmark under veteran coach Bob Lilley. The home side held a heavily rotated Crew side to just seven shot attempts in 90 minutes, despite the visitors holding 75% of the possession and completing over 700 passes on the night.

Despite those stats, the Riverhounds had the better chances throughout, and only needed to make one count. USL Championship Golden Boot leader Albert Dikwa was unsurprisingly the man for the job, sprinting in alone to fire past Evan Bush after a midfield turnover from the Crew.

Pittsburgh would see substitute Edward Kizza sent off deep into stoppage time, but still managed to keep Columbus at bay for what is the deepest run in their Open Cup history.

Down in Alabama, the scoreline was the same, but the path to it was a bit different. A Birmingham side starting eight players with MLS experience spent the first half largely pinned back by Charlotte, only for the visitors to lose center back Adilson Malanda to a second yellow card early in the second half.

From there, the Legion sensed their opportunity, changing their posture and making Charlotte work hard to hold them off on a hot night. That helped set up their goal, with Charlotte not recovering quickly enough to prevent Prosper Kasim from isolating Derrick Jones before pinging a low shot into the bottom corner.

The rewards for the the final two non-MLS teams left in the tournament are a bit different. Birmingham will be a popular pick to keep their run going, as they host a quarterfinal match against a stumbling Inter Miami side that managed to beat Nashville SC on Tuesday. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, has a far more daunting pairing, as they will head to Ohio to take on high-flying FC Cincinnati.

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Giorgio Chiellini did not love Riqui Puig’s El Trafico goal celebration

Props to Chiellini for translating his insult into Puig’s native language

Riqui Puig scored a Lionel Messi-like goal against LAFC on Tuesday night, and he pulled out a Messi-like celebration to mark the moment.

The LA Galaxy midfielder picked the ball up near midfield in the second half of the match, and proceeded to expertly weave his way through LAFC’s defense en route to a sensational individual goal.

Just like Messi famously did in 2017 at the Santiago Bernabéu, Puig removed his jersey and lifted it up in front of his biggest rival’s fans — a fitting move for a former teammate of Messi’s at Barcelona.

Puig’s goal would help the Galaxy to a 2-0 win over LAFC in the U.S. Open Cup round of 16, a desperately needed result for a team currently in last place in the MLS Western Conference table.

Chiellini calls Puig a clown

Puig’s celebration did not go down well with LAFC supporters or, apparently, its players.

As Puig was giving a post-game interview, LAFC defender Giorgio Chiellini emerged from his locker room to see the midfielder talking to the press. The Italian quite loudly yelled “payaso” — the Spanish word for clown.

We have to give Chiellini props for not only stoking the flames of the El Tráfico rivalry, but also translating his insult into its recipient’s native language. Very thoughtful! 

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2023 U.S. Open Cup draw for round of 16 headlined by LAFC vs. LA Galaxy clash

El Tráfico returns for the Open Cup’s next round

The draw for the U.S. Open Cup’s round of 16 has produced some enticing pairings.

Thursday’s draw produced another chapter for El Tráfico, with Los Angeles FC hosting the LA Galaxy in the western quadrant of the tournament’s bracket.

The winner of that game will face the victor from another regional rivalry, with the Colorado Rapids hosting Real Salt Lake in a Rocky Mountain Cup clash.

Fans of upsets also got something of a gift, with the final two remaining lower-division teams (both representing the USL Championship) both getting to play their last-16 match on home turf. The Pittsburgh Riverhounds, fresh off of a 1-0 upset of the New England Revolution, will host the Columbus Crew, while Birmingham Legion FC will welcome Charlotte FC to Alabama.

All round of 16 matches are set to take place on May 23-24.

U.S. Open Cup round of 16 draw

  • Austin FC vs. Chicago Fire*
  • Houston Dynamo vs. Minnesota United
  • New York Red Bulls vs. FC Cincinnati*
  • Pittsburgh Riverhounds vs. Columbus Crew
  • Birmingham Legion FC vs. Charlotte FC*
  • Inter Miami vs. Nashville SC
  • Colorado Rapids vs. Real Salt Lake*
  • Los Angeles FC vs. LA Galaxy

Home teams are listed first. Dates and kickoff times will be announced in the future. Winners of games marked with an asterisk (*) will host their quarterfinal match.

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2023 U.S. Open Cup round of 32: Schedule and results

US Open Cup streaming, schedule and results for the round of 32 in 2023’s tournament.

The U.S. Open Cup has kicked into high gear, with the top eight sides from MLS last season joining the fray for the round of 32.

That includes last year’s cup winners, Orlando City, as well as the MLS Cup champions Los Angeles FC. It also means that the chances for upsets have fallen off a bit, with nine all-MLS pairings to play in a round that will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday.

That’s not to say that there’s no chance for a run like Sacramento Republic’s march to last year’s final. At least one USL Championship side is guaranteed a place in the round of 16 after Birmingham Legion and Memphis 901 FC were paired up, while Sacramento, Monterey Bay FC, and Loudoun United will all host MLS opposition.

Elsewhere, MLS’s first rivalry will add another chapter, with the New York Red Bulls (and new coach Troy Lesesne) hosting D.C. United, while two of MLS’s strongest teams from last year will meet as FC Cincinnati hosts New York City FC.

Here are all of the round of 32 match-ups (home teams listed first, winners listed in bold as the tournament unfolds):

Tuesday, May 9

  • Inter Miami 1-0 Charleston Battery
  • Charlotte FC 1-0 Orlando City
  • New York Red Bulls 1-0 D.C. United
  • New England Revolution 0-1 Pittsburgh Riverhounds
  • Chicago Fire 2-1 St. Louis City SC
  • Minnesota United 3-3 (AET) Philadelphia Union (Minnesota United advances 7-6 on penalties)
  • Sacramento Republic FC 2-4 Colorado Rapids
  • Monterey Bay FC 2-2 (AET) Los Angeles FC (Los Angeles FC advances 5-4 on penalties)

Wednesday, May 10

  • Loudoun United FC 1-5 Columbus Crew
  • FC Cincinnati 1-0 New York City FC
  • Birmingham Legion FC 3-0 Memphis 901 FC
  • Nashville SC 2-0 FC Dallas
  • Houston Dynamo 1-0 Sporting Kansas City
  • Austin FC 2-0 New Mexico United
  • LA Galaxy 3-1 Seattle Sounders
  • Portland Timbers 3-4 Real Salt Lake

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