Crew knocks out Messi-less defending champ Miami in Leagues Cup
WASHINGTON: Diego Rossi scored two goals in the second half to help Columbus Crew beat Inter Miami 3-2 and advance to the Leagues Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday.
The Uruguayan forward tied the game for the Crew in the 69th minute and scored the winning goal in the 80th minute, knocking out the reigning champions Miami. Miami is currently leading the overall MLS league standings.
Miami’s star player Lionel Messi did not play due to a right ankle injury he suffered a month ago during Argentina’s Copa America final win over Colombia.
With this win, the Crew, who are the reigning MLS champions, will host a quarter-final match on Saturday against New York City, who won 2-1 over Tigres.
Paraguayan midfielder Matias Rojas gave Inter Miami an early 1-0 lead in the 10th minute, and his fellow countryman Diego Gomez made it 2-0 in the 62nd minute. However, US striker Christian Ramirez quickly responded for the Crew in the 67th minute, setting up Rossi to score twice and secure the victory.
The Leagues Cup is a tournament featuring MLS teams and Mexican Liga MX teams. Last year, Messi led Miami to win the tournament shortly after he joined the team.
New York City made a comeback to reach the quarter-finals. Argentine midfielder Guido Pizarro, the Tigres captain, scored the first goal with a header in the 18th minute, but another Argentine midfielder, Maxi Moralez, equalized for City in the 20th minute. Uruguayan Santiago Rodriguez then scored the winning goal for City in the 65th minute.
In Cincinnati, Tai Baribo scored two goals to help the Philadelphia Union beat the hosts 4-2.
Philadelphia took a 2-0 lead with goals from Danish forward Mikael Uhre in the 51st minute and Israeli striker Baribo in the 61st minute. Cincinnati fought back with a goal from Czech midfielder Pavel Bucha in the 66th minute and an equalizer from US defender DeAndre Yedlin in the 80th minute.
However, the Union quickly responded with goals from Baribo in the 82nd minute and US substitute Quinn Sullivan in the 84th minute.
Next, Philadelphia will host a quarter-final match on Saturday against Mazatlan, who defeated Cruz Azul on penalties after a 2-2 draw in Washington.
Mazatlan took a 2-0 lead with goals from Bryan Colula in the 40th minute and Panamanian midfielder Edgar Barcenas in the first minute of stoppage time. Cruz Azul was reduced to 10 men early in the second half when Argentine defender Gonzalo Piovi received a red card. Despite this, Cruz Azul managed to fight back, with Uriel Antuna scoring in the 84th minute and Colombian defender Willer Ditta equalizing in stoppage time.
In the penalty shootout, Antuna, Ditta, and Giorgos Giakoumakis missed their shots, and Mazatlan won 3-1 to advance.
The Colorado Rapids also advanced with a 2-1 home victory over Toluca.
Brazilian forward Rafael Navarro scored for Colorado in the 45th minute, but Portuguese striker Paulinho equalized in the 83rd minute. American Darren Yapi then scored the winning goal for Colorado in the sixth minute of stoppage time.
Next for Colorado is a quarter-final match on Saturday against Mexican champions Club America, who won 4-2 at St. Louis.
Uruguayan Brian Rodriguez scored a penalty kick for Club America in the 86th minute, and fellow Uruguayan Rodrigo Auirre added another goal in the eighth minute of stoppage time. Rodriguez had scored his first goal in the 15th minute, but US midfielder Indiana Vassilev equalized for St. Louis in the 49th minute, and German midfielder Eduard Lowen put St. Louis ahead in the 55th minute with a penalty kick. However, Chilean striker Diego Valdes equalized for Club America in the 79th minute.
Host LAFC defeated San Jose 4-1 to secure a quarter-final match on Saturday in Seattle.
LAFC took the lead with a goal from Uruguayan striker Cristian Olivera in the 17th minute, but Argentine midfielder Hernan Lopez equalized for the Earthquakes in the 41st minute. Gabon’s Denis Bouanga then scored a penalty kick in stoppage time to give LAFC a 2-1 lead at halftime.
Polish player Mateusz Bogusz added another goal for LAFC in the 61st minute, and Bouanga scored again in the 66th minute, giving LAFC a 4-1 lead.
All-time French goals leader Olivier Giroud made his LAFC debut in the 71st minute after joining the team from AC Milan in May.
