Lionel Messi, Inter Miami trounce Union, 4-1, in Leagues Cup semifinals

The Union became the latest victim in Lionel Messi’s MLS reign of terror, losing, 4-1, to Inter Miami in the Leagues Cup semifinals.

A rocking River End section at Subaru Park wasn’t enough to ruffle Messi, who continued his streak of scoring in every game he has played so far with Miami. His 20th-minute goal brought his tally to nine goals in six games with the Herons.

Reigning MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Andre Blake had a shaky performance, letting Miami’s first three shots on target go past him in the first half.

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“You just find yourself having an uphill battle against a team like that who likes to possess the ball,” said Union captain Alejandro Bedoya. “They get more into the game, get more confident.”

Bedoya, making his first appearance since July 15, got the Union on the board in the 73rd minute, scoring after a Kai Wagner corner kick. However, it was too little, too late to compete with Miami’s offense, which made the Union pay for every mistake they made in their defensive end.

“I think there is a little bit of maybe we’re too excited, maybe showing a little too much respect,” said Union coach Jim Curtin. “But we got punished by a good team. We got humbled a bit.”

Miami struck first and struck early. In the third minute, Josef Martínez beat Jack Elliott in a foot race to pounce on a long ball just inside the box and drill a shot past a diving Blake.

“Collectively as a team, coaches, players, [we were] just disappointed with how we started,” Curtin said. “That first goal was the one that was preventable and deflating.”

Curtin said pregame that Miami was “going to have more of the ball than we will,” and that prediction proved true. The Herons hung onto the ball for 58% of the first half, content to pass the ball around and draw fouls from the Union. The Union finished the first half with nine fouls and two yellow cards, while Miami collected just a single foul in the same span.

Messi added another clip to his growing highlight reel in the 20th minute, corralling a pass from Martínez and, with a burst of speed, burying the ball in the right corner from well outside the box.Even struck by Messi, the 30-yard effort will be a goal that Blake will want back.

Jordi Alba, Messi’s former Barcelona teammate, twisted the knife in first-half stoppage time. Alba snuck behind three Union defenders, and Blake’s aggressive dive out of the net proved to be a miscalculation, giving Alba an open lane to score his first MLS goal and sinking the Union into a three-goal deficit at half.

“We didn’t have our best first half, in particular,” Curtin said. “If you go down, 3-0, against a quality opponent, it’s going to be difficult.”

While Miami was putting on a show on one end, the Union offense seemed unable to find the net. The Union threw everything they had at Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender — but most of it was either high or wide. They had 16 shots to Miami’s five, but only four of those were on target.

Callender made some key stops, too. Dániel Gazdag was back in action against Miami after missing the quarterfinal with a knee injury, and he had a gift-wrapped chance to tie the game in the eighth minute. Wagner found Gazdag with a pass alone in front of the goal, but Callender turned aside Gazdag’s shot to preserve Miami’s lead, and Leon Flach’s rebound sailed just wide.

Gazdag, the Union’s own No. 10, tried his best Messi impression minutes after the Argentine’s goal with his own long-range strike, but his attempt once again was saved by Callender. In all, the Union tallied an expected goals figure of 2.37 goals compared to just 0.73 for Inter Miami. In other words, they had chances.

The Union finally found the back of the net in the 73rd minute thanks to Bedoya, who came off the bench in the second half to make his first Leagues Cup appearance and spoil Callender’s clean sheet.

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“It was just a corner kick,” Bedoya said. “I went to go to the first post area and it bounced right there. I just hit it, just trying to get it on target.”

But the dagger came with David Ruíz’s goal for Miami in the 84th minute that put Miami back in front by three and stifled any momentum the Union had built.

“We really don’t know when [was] the last time we conceded four goals in this building, and it’s been a really, really long time, I think,” Curtin said. “So that part hurts. It doesn’t feel normal, you know, walking off that field, having conceded four times. It almost never happens here. So that part’s difficult, for sure.”

To answer Curtin’s question, the last time the Union conceded four goals at home was against Montreal in September 2018.

A bid to the Concacaf Champions Cup (formerly League) is still in play for the Union if they win the third-place game against the Monterrey. The third-place game is set for Saturday at Subaru Park (6 p.m.. Apple TV).