Lionel Messi Guides Inter Miami To CONCACAF Champions Cup Quarter-Final, Exits Field Early Due To Injury

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Lionel Messi set up one and scored one before being forced off due to a leg injury as Inter Miami beat Nashville 3-1 in the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup round-of-16 match at the Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Wednesday (March 13) night.

Messi provided an assist to his former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez, who opened the scoring in the eighth minute before the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner added a goal in the 23rd minuted to give Inter Miami an early 2-0 lead.

The Argentine superstar, however, had to leave the match in the 50th minute with coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino confiming after the match that Messi left the field with a mild leg injury and he took him out as a precaution.

Messi, who also scored in the 2-2 draw in the first leg last week, had rested during Sunday's 3-2 loss to Montreal, which is the only game he has missed this season. Martino said Messi will likely miss the team's MLS match against D.C. United on Saturday (March 16).

"I don't want to risk it," Martino said. He added that Messi will undergo tests, and the team will evaluate from there. Messi was replaced Wednesday by Robert Taylor, who scored in the 63rd minute to give Inter Miami a 3-0 lead.

Inter Miami advanced to the CONCACAF Champions Cup quarter-finals with the 5-3 aggregate win. The teams had tied in the first leg in Nashville last Friday (March 8).

Messi reduced the deficit and Suarez scored the equalliser in stoppage time to rally Miami from 0-2 down to a 2-2 draw at the Geodis Park in Nashville.

Messi went down late in regulation time of that game when Nashville defender Lukas Macnaughton stepped on his left calf forcing the medics to check on Messi, who remained on the pitch.

That incident forced him to be listed as questionable with a shin injury ahead of Sunday's game against Montreal, but Martino said after that match that the plan was always to rest Messi for that game.

The rest seemed to bode well for Messi's performance Wednesday, as he wasted no time making an impact. He earned a free kick after a foul by Nashville's Aníbal Godoy just four minutes into the match, but had his attempt blocked.

The 36-year-old seized his opportunity a few minutes later, using his impressive vision to fit a pass to a streaking Suarez, who sent the ball into bottom right corner of the net.

Messi then used a pass from Diego Gomez to score from inside the penalty area as fans started chanting his name. Taylor later got on the scoresheet with a header off an assist by Suarez.

Nashville had a chance late in the second half when Hany Mukhtar got past Miami's defense and sent a shot into the back of the net. Officials overturned the goal after a lengthy review, ruling that Mukhtar was offside.

Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender, coming off a disappointing performance against Montreal, had two saves before giving up a goal to Sam Surridge in stoppage time.

The meeting on Wednesday (March 13) was the fourth time that Nashville faced Messi since he joined Inter Miami and MLS last summer. Earlier, they had earned three draws, including a shootout win in the 2023 Leagues Cup final.

Messi and Inter Miami will next face FC Cincinnati or Monterrey in the two legged CONCACAF Champions Cup quarter-final, scheduled for April 2 and April 9.