What to know as Messi, Inter Miami play Champions Cup rematch vs. Sporting KC Tuesday
The drizzle should be gone by Tuesday night and the temperature will be 80 degrees warmer in Fort Lauderdale than it was in Kansas City last Wednesday, when Inter Miami beat Sporting KC 1-0 in the first leg of the Concacaf Champions Cup.
Lionel Messi and his teammates will have no need for leggings and gloves. Instead, they will be in shorts, aiming to win the second leg Tuesday with kickoff at 8 p.m. at Chase Stadium. The team with the best aggregate score over the two games advances, with away goals serving as the tiebreaker.
Neither team has had much time to prepare. Inter Miami is coming off a dramatic 2-2 tie against NYCFC in its MLS season opener on Saturday night, a game that stretched 105 minutes. Sporting KC lost 1-0 on the road to Austin FC.
“We had to train the whole time in that [weather],” said Sporting KC coach Peter Vermes. “It has been difficult. You can’t do preparation the way you’d like. There were days when it was 5-below. It’s hard to go on the field. The elements were very difficult for both teams. It’s not something you’d want to play in if you had your choice.”
Vermes agreed with Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano, who was unhappy that the teams had to play three games in seven days with inclement weather and long flights in between.
“I’ve always said, I’m not a fan of the way we start this competition before we start MLS,” Vermes said. “I think we should have a few games under our belt before we get into the competition. It’s very difficult.”
Vermes said the congested schedule is also an issue with Leagues Cup in the summer, when the Mexican clubs are just starting their league preseason.
But the schedule is what it is, both Miami and Kansas City have to adjust, and Messi is still Messi, in sub-zero and tropical climates.
The key to stopping Inter Miami is to contain Messi, and Vermes said nobody has figured out how to do it. He scored the lone goal against KC last Wednesday and had both assists in Miami’s tie with NYCFC.
“There’s so many different coaches that have tried over the years, and you just can’t put a game plan in for him,” said Vermes. “He’s one of those players, and there are just a few, who can change the outcome of a game on their own. You try your best to limit the number of balls going to him so maybe he doesn’t have as much of an impact. It’s no secret we have to do that and be very organized defensively.”
Vermes added that Messi’s teammates have learned to play with him, which makes Miami an even more complicated opponent.
“They know their movement off the ball will be rewarded, if it’s good,” Vermes said. “And then that combination between him and [Luis] Suarez is fantastic. And when Jordi Alba plays, there’s another dimension, and then you have [Sergio] Busquets in the middle…There’s a lot you have to be concentrating on when you face this team.”
Asked which of Messi’s new teammates impresses him, Vermes replied: “There’s not one hole in their lineup. They have guys coming off their bench that are as capable and sometimes even bring a different element to the position. They are a very difficult team to play.”
Despite Miami’s depth and star power, KC managed to hold them to just one goal in the first leg, which bodes well for Tuesday.
“It’s a massive factor and a reason why despite the result in Kansas City, there were some positives to take from that and one of them is that we kept it to one goal for them for their away goals, so we’re in a position now where a victory where we score two or three, despite being tied on aggregate, that could really help us,” Kansas City goalkeeper John Pulskamp.
Playing against Messi was special, Pulskamp said, but he didn’t let it affect his performance.
“I’d be lying if I said it didn’t have that cool factor of playing against someone you grew up watching, someone you viewed as the top of the top, but at the other side of that, he’s an opponent just like any other,” he said. “Yes, you know in the back of your mind that he’s a player that has a special ability, but other players have special abilities, too. Afterward, you can take that moment to reflect on it being a cool moment.”
One person who took the cool moment factor a bit too far was Mexican referee Marco Antonio Ortiz Nava, who was sanctioned by Concacaf for approaching Messi at the final whistle of the game in Kansas City last week and asking for his autograph to give to a family member with special needs.
“I wasn’t part of it, but I just had some players upset that they weren’t asked for their jersey,” Vermes joked, when asked about the referee on Monday, adding that he didn’t think it had any influence on the officiating.
“It’s Messi. I understand it. As much the players feel privileged to be on the field, so does everybody else to be around that environment. When you see the genius, they’re not the same. It is what it is.”
Injury report
Yannick Bright (thigh laceration), Fafa Picault (leg muscle), Marcelo Weigandt (leg muscle) are day to day. Drake Callender (adductor) trained this week and Mascherano said he hopes he feels 100 percent soon.
How to Watch
Inter Miami vs. Sporting KC kicks off at 8 p.m. at Chase Stadium. It will be broadcast on FS2 in English and TUDN in Spanish. Tickets are available through TicketMaster.
This story was originally published February 24, 2025 at 5:34 PM.