U.S. Open Cup final: Messi out for Inter Miami vs. Houston Dynamo

Messi is not in uniform for Miami in the Open Cup final

Lionel Messi is not available for Inter Miami in Wednesday night’s U.S. Open Cup final against the Houston Dynamo.

The Argentine star had been a significant doubt after pulling out of last Wednesday’s rout of Toronto FC. He then did not dress for the Herons’ 1-1 draw with Orlando City this past Sunday.

With a trophy on the line at DRV PNK Stadium, manager Gerardo “Tata” Martino had said on Tuesday that Miami would keep the door open for Messi until “the last minute.” However, the iconic attacker’s fight to get over an old scar tissue problem has come up short.

With Messi set to watch from the stands, Martino made four changes to his starting 11 from the draw with Orlando. Sergio Busquets, Facundo Farías, Diego Gómez, and Kamal Miller stepped into the Miami 11. The Herons, win or lose on Wednesday, will face another critical game on Saturday when New York City FC — who hold the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference at the moment — visit south Florida.

Jordi Alba, meanwhile, will miss out as expected after Martino cast serious doubt on the ex-Barcelona left back’s ability to recover from what the club has called “muscular fatigue.” His spot in the 11 once again went to youngster Noah Allen.

Houston, meanwhile, made seven changes to the side that fell 2-1 at Sporting Kansas City over the weekend, snapping an eight-game unbeaten run in all competitions.

U.S. Open Cup final starting lineups

Inter Miami (4-3-3): Drake Callender; DeAndre Yedlin, Sergii Kryvtsov, Kamal Miller, Noah Allen; Benja Cremaschi, Sergio Busquets, Diego Gómez; Facundo Farías, Leo Campana, Robert Taylor

Houston Dynamo (4-2-3-1): Andrew Tarbell; Griffin Dorsey, Erik Sviatchenko, Micael, Franco Escobar; Artur, Héctor Herrera; Adalberto Carrasquilla, Amine Bassi, Nelson Quiñónes; Corey Baird

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