CONCACAF Champions Cup semifinals: Can Lionel Messi's Inter Miami rebound, overcome 2-0 deficit against Brian White's Vancouver Whitecaps?
After a 2-0 leg one victory in Canada, can the white-hot Whitecaps hold on in leg 2, or will Messi magic prevail?
A spot in the first continental final of 2025 is on the line for four CONCACAF clubs this week. Tigres and Cruz Azul will square Thursday off to determine Liga MX's representative in the Champions Cup final, while on the other side of the bracket, Inter Miami host the Vancouver Whitecaps Wednesday in a clash between MLS standouts.
Vancouver seized control in the first leg, blanking Miami 2-0 at home in a result that raised eyebrows across North America. But with leg two set for South Florida – and Lionel Messi back in the squad – the tie is far from over.
That said, the Whitecaps' start to 2025 has been nothing short of remarkable. Sitting atop both the Western Conference and the Supporters’ Shield standings after 10 regular-season matches, they’ve quickly become one of the league’s most compelling stories. Under first-year head coach Jesper Sørensen, Vancouver is 7-1-2, tied for the most goals scored in MLS and holding the league’s best goal differential.
Heading into the return leg, they're brimming with belief.
“We won the first one and know what we’re going to face Wednesday – a great team with great players that have done this before,” Sørensen said. “We have to play at our best and we’re ready. We’re excited, but also focused. It’s a big opportunity, and I’m happy for the players. No matter the result, they’ll grow from this experience. We’re moving forward – and now we can do that with a smile.”
Inter Miami, meanwhile, enter with urgency.
After a quarterfinal exit in last year’s competition, this is already the furthest the club has gone – but a semifinal finish isn’t the goal.
“We’re trailing, and on Wednesday we have to believe in the comeback,” said manager Javier Mascherano following Miami’s 1-0 loss to FC Dallas. “There’s nothing to lose – everything to gain.
“From the first minute, we need to take the game to Vancouver through our play. You don’t come back from 2-0 without playing well. We need to focus on our game, control what we can, and get that first goal. The rest can follow – but only if we start the right way.”
Sunday’s loss to Dallas was Miami’s first of 2025 in MLS, but the club rotated heavily, resting stars such as Messi ahead of the decisive second leg. With a second cup on the line in the Messi era, Miami will need a big performance – and perhaps something special – to flip the script against the most in-form team in the league.
Get the MLS Season Pass today!Stream games nowGetty Images SportRecapping Leg 1
In front of a sold-out crowd of over 50,000 people at BC Place, the Whitecaps took leg one in utterly dominant fashion. Goals from U.S. international Brian White and midfielder Sebastian Berhalter – son of former USMNT manager and current Chicago coach Gregg Berhalter – led the Canadian side to a stunning 2-0 victory over the South Beach club.
They held to just nine total shots, only two of which were on target. Resilient in every area, specifically in the midfield, it led Vancouver to a big win – but more importantly – a clean sheet, and an advantage heading into leg two.
"I think it's fair to say that a lot of people who have seen us play have been happy with the attack… but we've been a good defensive team," said Sørensen post-match. "We also showed that today, even when the way we would like to play doesn't really work, and we make too many bad passes, and we lose the ball way too easy, then we can still rely on our structure and rely on our defense side."
Miami, meanwhile, realizes the hole it put itself in after the match. Without an away goal on the road in Vancouver, they're now at a spot where if they concede – at all – in leg two, the deficit grows even bigger.
"Nothing to lose, you know, nothing to lose," Mascherano said. "We have to try to win the game. We know that we have to score at least two goals and don't concede. And we will try to do it. Now, maybe the pressure is for Vancouver. They have to keep the result."
Heading into leg two of the tie, Mascherano reminisced about a famous night in 2017, when – as a player for Barcelona – he was part of a squad that overcame a 6-1 deficit against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League. Dubbed the "remantado," the Argentine manager believes such moments prove anything can happen.
"That night I learned that nothing is impossible. In football, everything can happen. Everything, absolutely everything," Mascherano said Tuesday. "An elimination that we were 4-0 down. I think it was 2-0, in the second half we had it almost there and then they scored a goal and we had to score three more and we did it because in the end, until the referee signals the end, everything can happen.
"I think that more than I can transmit as a coach, I have, at that moment, four teammates who shared with me the experience, and they live it their skin. That's the thing that they can convey to rest. Clearly the situation is different, there are no two equal games, the contexts are totally different, but I think that the tie-breaker and tomorrow's situation in particular will give us the possibility of getting through."
Berhalter, meanwhile, acknowledged that Vancouver can't let anything get to their heads. To win in the manner in which the club did, while adding in how successfully it started the 2025 campaign, there's a lot to be positive about. However, remaining composed and humble is how they are heading into Leg 2.
"Got one more game," said Berhalter. "We can't get ahead of ourselves. Thank the fans for coming out here and making an incredible atmosphere, but we've got one more game, so we gotta take care of business."
AdvertisementImagnVancouver's keys to success
With a two-goal advantage, Vancouver has a lot to play with – and room for error, too.
The goal for the Whitecaps has to be an early goal. If they can find the back of the net – at all, at any point – during the game, their odds of advancing improve even more due to the away goal rule. If they take an early lead, Miami would need to score FOUR unanswered to advance, and put even more pressure on them. Ultimately, the goal has to be to fluster them and force them into uncomfortable situations – whether through finding the back of the net, or playing hard, mentally and physically.
Getting White free in the box, with Ali Ahmed, Jayden Nelson, Emmanuel Sabbi, or Daniel Rios in wide roles to stretch their defense will be key. The have constantly been exposed on the right flank of their defense over the past year, and forcing pressure onto that side of the pitch, with White operating inside the 18-yard box, is likely their best bet.
The cards are in their hands, and one goal puts them in a fantastic situation as a result.
GettyMiami's keys to success
Score, and likely fast.
Vancouver's defense has been spectacular to begin 2025; they've conceded the least amount of goals across all of MLS (alongside the New England Revolution) with just seven – getting by them as the game goes on will be increasingly difficult. Miami knows it needs at least two goals to draw level and send the match to extra-time, while a third would see it advance into the final, but only if it keeps a clean sheet. If Vancouver scores even just one goal, it is four goals minimum due to the away goal rule, and extra-time is out the door as an option.
Freeing up Suarez in the final third, while getting Messi on the ball, has to be the game plan. The Argentine needs to be fed in and around the box to enable 1v1 situations where he can take on defenders. Meanwhile, Suarez will either be drawing defenders away from Messi to allow those take-ons, or he will free himself up around the six-yard-box to receive the ball.
Depending on how Mascherano lines up his squad, it could be a big evening for their two star forwards, but also 20-year-old USMNT midfielder Benjamin Cremaschi, who is having a breakout 2025 campaign. The attacking midfielder could be tasked with linking the midfield and the attack, while slowing Vancouver's counterattacks down, as well.
If the want a chance to play for the Champions Cup trophy, they need to score, score, score. No room for excuses, no room for error.
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GOAL's prediction
It is going to be a tight match, especially knowing that Miami's ex-Barcelona quartet of Messi, Suarez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets were all rested on Matchday 10 – meaning they will be on fresher legs. With both teams having played on Sunday, though, it will be a relatively level playing field.
Due to the unique rule of away goals being active, Vancouver will take this series and upset the Miami is going to win the match 3-1, but a lone strike from Vancouver will be enough to get it over the line with the two-legged affair ending 3-3 on aggregate, but the Whitecaps advance due to away goals.