Lionel Messi provided two assists as Inter Miami beat FC Cincinnati on penalty shootout to reach the 2023 US Open Cup final on Wednesday night.
Former Flying Eagles midfielder Obinna Nwobodo was in action for Cincinnati and played the full 120 minutes.
Inter Miami triumphed 5-4 on penalties after 120 minutes ended 3-3.
With Cincinnati ahead 2-0, Messi set up Inter Miami’s first goal on 68 minutes and provided another assist in the 97th minute to level the score.
Three minutes into first half extra-time Inter Miami went 3-2 up before Cincinnati scored on 114th minute to take the game to penalties.
In the shootout, Cincinnati converted the first kick before Messi made it 1-1.
On Sunday, Inter Miami landed their first-ever trophy after defeating Nashville on penalty shootout to win the Leagues Cup.
Messi put Inter Miami ahead in regulation time and also in the shootout against Nashville.
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Inter Miami will take on Houston Dynamo in the US Open Cup billed for Wednesday, September 27, 2023.
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men’s football in the US.
It is the country’s oldest ongoing national football competition which was first held during the 1913–1914 season as the National Challenge Cup, with Brooklyn Field Club winning a trophy donated by Thomas Dewar for the promotion of American football.
It was renamed and dedicated to North American Soccer League (NASL) and Major League Soccer (MLS) executive Lamar Hunt by the United States Soccer Federation in 1999.
