Messi, Inter Miami at Monterrey in Champions Cup Wednesday a red-hot rivalry. Here’s why

Mexican cuisine varies in spiciness from mild to extra hot, and the same can be said for matchups between MLS and Liga MX teams over the years. Some of the rivalries were less spicy, some more.

It is safe to say there has never been a more piquant or anticipated showdown between an MLS team and a Liga MX team than the second leg of the Inter Miami vs. Monterrey Champions Cup quarterfinal Wednesday night.

A global audience is expected to tune in at 10:30 p.m. ET as Lionel Messi and his Miami teammates take on Mexican heavyweight Monterrey for the final spot in the Champions Cup semifinals. A sellout crowd of 53,000 is expected at Estadio BBVA in Monterrey, and word is Tigres fans from across town are going to show up in pink to root for Messi and against their archrival Rayados.

Fans at home can watch on FS1 in English and in Spanish on TUDN.

In the first leg at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale last Wednesday, Monterrey scored two goals in the final 21 minutes to secure a 2-1 come-from-behind victory and an advantage heading home in the two-leg aggregate series. Messi sat out that game with a hamstring injury, the fourth in a row he missed, but returned to action Saturday in a league game against the Colorado Rapids and scored a goal 13 minutes after coming in off the bench.

He is expected to play, and likely start, against Monterrey.

“He felt good after playing 45 minutes (against Colorado), so apparently the injury is behind him, which is the most important thing because our season is just beginning,” Inter Miami coach Tata Martino said in his pre-game press conference from Monterrey Tuesday night.

What must Inter Miami do to advance?

To advance outright, Miami needs to win Wednesday’s game by at least two goals. Away goals are the tiebreaker, so Miami would be ousted with a 1-0 win at Monterrey. A 2-1 win would would force extra time and potentially a PK shootout. Miami advances if it scores three or more goals in a one-goal win. Any tie or loss would eliminate Miami.

As if that weren’t enough to fire up Messi and his team, both the Monterrey goals last week were scored after Inter Miami went down a man following the expulsion of midfielder David Ruiz with two yellow cards. The decision to throw out Ruiz drew the ire of Messi, and several of his teammates, and a heated argument with the referee and Monterrey’s coaching staff erupted in a hallway between the two team locker rooms.

Monterrey filed a formal complaint with Concacaf against Inter Miami regarding a verbal exchange between Messi and Monterrey coach Fernando “Tano” Ortiz. The complaint also mentioned Inter Miami players Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba, who supported Messi in the dispute, according to Mexican media reports. Audio was leaked of Monterrey assistant coach Nico Sanchez describing the scene referring to Messi as “the dwarf”, saying the Argentine star had a “devilish face” and lifted his fist as if he wanted to punch the coach.

The clash was apparently fueled by an Ortiz interview in the days leading to Wednesday’s game insinuating that the officiating would be biased in favor of Inter Miami because Messi is on the team and he drives business.

What Tata Martino says about the Messi-Ortiz incident

Martino had declined comment on the incident all week, saying his team is focused on the match, not on “the telenovela” (soap opera) that surrounds it.

Asked about it again on the eve of the match, Martino said: “It’s a shame that with such a big game ahead of us against a great opponent that we should have to talk about these off-field things. For me, it is not worthwhile.”

Martino, who coached the Mexican national team for four years before being fired in 2022, has faced harsh criticism from fans and media in that country. A reporter asked if he expected a hostile reception. He said: “I am just a supporting actor in the game.”

Finally, Martino was asked if Messi seemed extra motivated to play Wednesday because of the situation last week, he replied: “Leo has been competing the same way since he he was 16 or 17 years old. He does not need any extra motivation. In the situation he is in, in the league he is in, I don’t expect him to do anything but compete at the highest level, at his maximum capacity, every game.”

Liga MX has dominated MLS in Champions Cup

Miami, playing in its first Champions Cup, is facing a Rayados team with loads of experience. It is the Mexican team’s sixth appearance in the quarterfinals, and the club has advanced to the semis on the five previous occasions.

Monterrey has lost just once to an MLS team in the knockout stage, 1-0 at Atlanta United in the 2019 quarterfinals.

Champions Cup is a measuring stick by which MLS sees how it stacks up against other leagues in the region, particularly Liga MX, which has a rich history that predates MLS by half a century.

So far, Liga MX has dominated this competition, winning 17 of the last 18 titles. The Seattle Sounders won in 2022 over Pumas, but before that Liga MX teams won 16 in a row. Monterrey won five of those trophies, the latest in 2021.

MLS, by contrast, has had one champion and three finalists in the past 15 years. Defending MLS champion Columbus Crew got one step closer to reaching a final on Tuesday night, advancing to the semis over Tigres in a penalty shootout in Mexico. Columbus awaits the winner of Inter Miami vs. Monterrey.

The winner of the tournament earns a spot in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, which is being held in the United States next summer.

Herculez Gomez breaks down the match

ESPN commentator Herculez Gomez, a Mexican American who played for many MLS and Liga MX teams over his 17-year career, competed in numerous Champions Cup/League tournaments. He has lived it from both sides of the border and finds the Miami vs. Monterrey matchup to be among the most intriguing in recent memory.

In previewing Wednesday’s game as a guest on the Miami Herald podcast Inside Inter Miami, Gomez began by explaining that Liga MX can be divided into clubs that are “old money and new money” and Monterrey falls in the “new money” category. He compared the traditional old Mexican powers such as Chivas, Club America, Cruz Azul and Pumas to the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers, and San Francisco 49ers.

Monterrey and rival Tigres are the nouveau riche of Liga MX, the teams with new money who have acquired higher-priced players.

“Inter Miami is facing off against what many consider one of the richest rosters in all Latin America, and certainly when you talk about Concacaf,” Gomez said. “If you go through the names on their roster from one through 30, you’d be hard pressed to find richer resumes. It’s going to be interesting.”

As for the atmosphere Miami players and fans can expect in Monterrey, Gomez is curious to see how many fans show up in pink Messi No. 10 shirts. He has heard that Tigres fans may show up in big numbers and support Miami.

“Inter Miami has taken over Tigre fans who want to go see Messi, Jordi Alba, Luis Suarez, and they’re snatching up Inter Miami jerseys and want to go support Messi, one because he’s a global icon, but number two because they hate Rayados,” Gomez said. “The rivalry is that big.”

It will be the first time a soccer star of Messi’s level of fame plays in a Mexican stadium, Gomez said, and security will be tighter than ever. He said fans there are buying tickets on the secondary market in record numbers.

“We’ve had international stars Bebeto and Ronaldinho playing in Mexico, and they move the needle, but not an icon of this magnitude,” he said. “This is unlike anything we’ve ever seen in this country. I’m glad it’s in this city and at this stadium, because they will be more prepared than most.”

Martino was not surprised to see hundreds of Mexican fans lining the streets, awaiting Messi at the team hotel Tuesday.

“Leo’s presence transcends any situation, no matter what shirt, people love football, and we knew something like this could happen,” Martino said. “This is what happens when you have the best player in the world.”

Asked on the eve of the game how his team plans to contain Messi, Ortiz smiled and replied: “We are Monterrey. We are at home with our fans. Messi can worry about us. No, but seriously, we are very fortunate to be on the field with the best player in the world. We will enjoy it, but at the same time we want to win.”

How to Watch?

On FS1 in English and on TUDN in Spanish. Kickoff is 10:30 p.m. ET.

When are Champions Cup semifinals?

If Inter Miami advances to the semifinals, the first leg will be on April 23-25, with the second leg April 30-May 2. Miami’s next league game is Saturday at Kansas City (8:30 p.m., Apple TV). The team will fly directly from Monterrey to Kansas City and train there before the game.