Messi scored a pair of first-half goals and added two assists, leading the way as third-seeded Inter Miami defeated sixth-seeded Nashville SC 4-0 on Saturday night in the decisive Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series.
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Tadeo Allende scored a pair of goals about three minutes apart, both assisted by Messi, in the second half to open the game for Inter Miami, which beat Nashville 8-3 in the series. Messi participated in those eight goals, scoring five and assisting the other three.
Inter Miami will go to FC Cincinnati for an East semifinal matchup (it’s all single elimination now, as opposed to the best-of-three format in Round 1) on Nov. 22 or 23. Cincinnati was 1-0-1 against Inter Miami this season, winning 3-0 at home on July 16 and drawing 0-0 at Fort Lauderdale on July 26. Messi was in the lineup for the first match, but not for the second.
Messi is the heavy favorite to win his second consecutive MLS MVP award and, if that happens, he would be the first consecutive winner in league history. He also won the Golden Boot as MLS top scorer this season, just finalized a new three-year contract to stay with the club until 2028 and appears to be playing his best football at the perfect time for Inter Miami.
This is the first time Inter Miami has made it this far in the MLS playoffs. South Florida’s MLS predecessor, the defunct Miami Fusion, reached the league semifinals in its final season in 2001, but this is new territory for Inter Miami.
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A year ago, in Messi’s first full season with the club, he lost Game 3 of Round 1 at home as the Supporters Shield winner and was eliminated by Atlanta.
Not this time. Messi took care of that.
With four Nashville defenders around him, Messi scored from the top of the 18-yard box in the 10th minute for a 1-0 lead. And the second goal came from almost the same place, although much easier.
Mateo Silvetti controlled a long pass and beat a Nashville defender, drawing the attention of goalkeeper Joe Willis. Silvetti pushed the ball toward Messi, who had nothing but an empty net to fire in the 39th minute for a 2-0 lead.
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Inter Miami is now 19-2-3 this season in MLS when scoring at least two goals, but Nashville had the Herons win this one.
It appeared, at least briefly, that Nashville cut the lead in half in the first minute of the second half, but Sam Surridge’s would-be goal was called back because one of his feet became tangled with Inter Miami’s Maxi Falcon on the play and a foul was called.
The winner of Inter Miami-Cincinnati will play first-seeded Philadelphia Union or fifth-seeded NYCFC in the East final. The MLS Cup final is scheduled for December 6, and Philadelphia, Cincinnati or Inter Miami would host that game if they reached the title game.
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AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds contributed to this story.
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AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer