Messi, Inter Miami face win-or-go-home playoff Game 3 vs. Nashville on Saturday
For the second year in a row, Lionel Messi and his star-stacked Inter Miami team find themselves on the brink of first-round elimination from the MLS Playoffs.
The scenario is simple:
If Miami beats Nashville SC on Saturday night in Fort Lauderdale, it will clinch the best-of-3 series and advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the first time in club history. If Miami loses, its season ends prematurely, and the team that entered the year with hopes of winning four trophies would finish humiliated and empty-handed.
Messi is arguably the greatest player of all time, has won eight Ballon d’Or trophies and a World Cup, won the MLS Golden Boot this season and is all-but-assured to be the first player in MLS history to win back-to-back MVP awards.
Inter Miami has the highest payroll in the league, by far, at $48.97 million.
None of that mattered as the Argentine icon and his teammates trudged off the GEODIS Park field on Saturday night, cold, wet and defeated after a 2-1 loss to Nashville SC in Game 2 of the series.
Nashville had never beaten Inter Miami in nine tries heading into Saturday’s game and was coming off back-to-back losses over the previous two weeks by a combined score of 8-3.
“Our backs were against the wall; early in the week we said, `There’s no way this team is going to beat us three times in a row,’’’ said Nashville SC defender Josh Bauer, who scored the second goal against Miami on Saturday.
“You can talk about tactics, and we did make some tweaks, but this game was between the ears and in our hearts. You could see that from everyone. It was a little cold and rainy, perfect for us to be dogs out there.”
Inter Miami should expect the same intensity from Nashville players when Game 3 kicks off at 8 p.m. on Saturday at Chase Stadium.
“We need to come with the same mentality [in Game 3] and not let them push us around, show we can go toe-to-toe with them,” Bauer said. “We talk about the game within the game, all the little things that go on. We’ve gotta be nasty.”
Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano urged his players to bottle up their frustration and anger from Game 2 and “unleash it” in front of the home fans to keep the season alive.
Bauer said Saturday’s win injected the Nashville locker room with confidence.
“Beating Miami, getting that monkey off our back… but we know it’s going to take an effort even greater than we had [Saturday] to beat them on the road,” he said. “This is when the lights are the brightest and we have to be prepared for it. It’s win or go home.”
Nashville found a way to limit Messi, who did manage to score Miami’s lone goal in the final minute of regulation. Nashville defenders cut off passing lanes to Messi, fouled him and forced other Miami attackers out of their comfort zone.
“We wanted to keep them out of the middle of the field and not let them run at us,” Bauer said. “It was a full team commitment. [Goalkeeper] Joe [Willis] came up big a couple of times. The way we imposed ourselves on them didn’t allow them to have as many dangerous chances.”
Bauer won his game-long battle with Miami forward Tadeo Allende.
He explained: “Allende is a player who likes to get in behind. I knew that. He loves to do a little check and go, so I was always cautious of that. I favor myself in those matchups. I think I can compete physically in that regard. He’s obviously a great player, and they have players who can make that pass and put us under pressure, but it’s about always being on high alert with those guys. You can’t switch off for a moment, or they’ll punish you.”
On the other end of the field, Miami defenders were not on high alert when Nashville’s Hany Mukhtar sent a corner kick into the crowded area in the 45th minute. Bauer slid in and scored from six yards out.
“I’m always trying to score on set pieces; those are our moments as defenders to get up the field and get our chances,” Bauer said. “I’m someone other teams don’t plan for, or forget about, especially when you guys like Walker [Zimmerman], who are obvious targets. So, if I can slip under the radar and get in a good spot…credit to the coaching staff for getting us in those areas. We worked on that exact play all week and it showed.”
Five of the first-round series were pushed to a third game. The three teams that already advanced are Philadelphia Union, which is the top seed in the East, and Vancouver and Los Angeles FC, who are seeded No. 2 and No. 3 in the West.
In addition to Inter Miami vs. Nashville SC, other Game 3 matchups this weekend are: FC Cincinnati vs. Columbus Crew, Charlotte vs. New York City FC, Seattle Sounders vs. Minnesota United, and Portland Timbers (led by former Inter Miami coach Phil Neville) vs. San Diego FC, the top team in the West.
If Miami advances, it will play the winner of the Cincinnati vs. Crew game. It would be a Miami home game if the Crew is the opponent, and a road game if Cincinnati advances. The Eastern Conference semifinals are Nov. 22-23, after the November FIFA break.
Tickets for Saturday’s Game 3 are available through Ticketmaster and at secondary online markets. It will be shown on Apple TV.
This story was originally published November 4, 2025 at 3:21 PM.