On the morning of April 4, coach Tata Martino made a risky decision not to use Messi, which caused Inter Miami to lose to Monterrey with a score of 1-2 in the quarterfinals of the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup.

Without Messi , coach Tata Martino used the Inter Miami attack with the trio of Robert Taylor, Luis Suarez and Julian Gressel. In defense, Nicolas Freire promptly returned with young player Tomas Aviles, only 19 years old, playing the central defender position. Famous players Jordi Alba, Busquets and rookie Marcelo Weigandt all appear in the main squad.

Messi (left) had to sit outside and watch the match with his children and family

TNT Sports

With this lineup, Inter Miami took advantage of its home field advantage to control the match quite well against a strong opponent from Mexico, Monterrey. In the 18th minute, Julian Gressel took a dangerous corner kick, helping young midfielder Tomas Aviles join the sudden attack and score a close-range shot to make the score 1-0.

The goal helped Inter Miami play solidly in defense, while there were always quick attacks that caused many difficulties for Monterrey.

However, in the second half, everything reversed for Inter Miami when Monterrey rose up and applied intense pressure. On Inter Miami’s side, midfielder Robert Taylor had to leave the field due to injury at the end of the first half, causing the attack to lack sharpness, He continued to play with 10 people when David Ruiz received 2 yellow cards and left the field in the 66th minute.

Difficulties piled up, and Inter Miami allowed Monterrey to equalize 1-1 in the 69th minute, scored by Maximiliano Meza. At the end of the match, Inter Miami’s defense made a mistake, helping Jorge Rodriguez increase the score to 2-1 for Monterrey. These goals help the Mexican team have many advantages before the home leg thanks to the away goals rule.

Tomas Aviles (center) opened the score for Inter Miami

Inter Miami Club

Meanwhile, Messi’s injury has progressed more positively. The famous Argentine player also returned to normal training on Tuesday this week, but coach Tata Martino still could not take any risks and decided to let him continue to rest.

According to ESPN, coach Tata Martino will use Messi to play again in the match against Colorado Rapids in the MLS tournament at 6:30 a.m. on April 7 to prepare for the return match against Monterrey away from home at 9:30 a.m. on April 11, for a chance to get tickets to the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup.

Losing the first leg at home to Monterrey, Inter Miami will face more difficulties in the away leg in the second leg

Inter Miami Club

This April, Inter Miami will play a total of 6 matches, including 2 matches against Monterrey and 4 matches in the MLS tournament. In order to reach the semi-finals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, the team of Mr. David Beckham, president and co-owner, will also play 2 more matches.

Therefore, coach Tata Martino has carefully used Messi to avoid this famous player from being re-injured or overloaded, which could easily lead to a long-term layoff.