Lionel Messi's Inter Miami Goal Count Surges as Club Enters Leagues Cup Final | Football News

Lionel Messi continues his goal-scoring streak as Inter Miami secures a 4-1 victory over Philadelphia Union in the Leagues Cup semi-final.

Lionel Messi continued his incredible goal-scoring streak as Inter Miami confidently secured their place in the final of the Leagues Cup with an impressive 4-1 victory over Philadelphia Union on Tuesday. The Argentine superstar has now scored nine goals in just six appearances for Miami, showcasing his exceptional talent. Alongside Messi, former Barcelona teammate Josef Martinez and substitute David Ruiz also contributed to Miami's goal tally, as well as Jordi Alba, another ex-Barcelona player. Philadelphia's Alejandro Bedoya managed to find the back of the net for his team, but they struggled to match Miami's dominance throughout the match.

This victory means that Messi will lead Miami in his 42nd career final when the World Cup-style tournament, which involves clubs from Mexico and Major League Soccer, concludes on Saturday. Additionally, Miami's win secures their spot in next year's CONCACAF Champions Cup, the premier regional club competition.

The semi-final clash in Philadelphia was expected to be Messi's toughest test since joining Miami from Paris Saint-Germain on July 21. Philadelphia is known as one of the strongest teams in MLS and currently holds the third position in the Eastern Conference standings, while Miami is at the bottom of the table.

Despite Philadelphia's strong home record, with only one defeat in their previous 38 matches at Subaru Park, they found themselves in disarray just three minutes into the game as Miami took the lead. A long pass from Ukrainian defender Sergii Kryvtsov caused chaos in Philadelphia's defense, allowing Martinez to capitalize and score a goal past goalkeeper Andre Blake.

Philadelphia had a chance to equalize five minutes later when Daniel Gazdag broke through the defense, but his shot went straight into the arms of Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender. Gazdag had another opportunity after 19 minutes, but his curling shot narrowly missed the target.

However, any hope Philadelphia had was quickly extinguished as Messi struck again to exploit the Union's defensive lapses. Martinez escaped his marker, thanks to Damion Lowe's mistake, and set up Messi, who had plenty of time and space to unleash a powerful low strike from outside the box, beating Blake.

Just before halftime, Miami delivered a crucial blow. Robert Taylor showed excellent ball control in midfield before finding the advancing Alba, who finished with precision, extending Miami's lead to 3-0.

In the second half, Philadelphia coach Jim Curtin made changes to his formation, adding an extra attacker in an attempt to turn the tide. However, the Union wasted two prime opportunities, with Chris Donovan shooting over the crossbar after rounding Callender, and Jakob Glesnes lofting the ball over the bar from close range.

Philadelphia's hope briefly flickered when Bedoya scored from a corner kick in the 73rd minute. But Miami quickly extinguished any chance of a comeback as Ruiz reinstated their three-goal advantage just six minutes before the final whistle.

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