Soccer
Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez and Jordi Alba were spectators, dressed in street clothes and sipping on maté in fieldside seats with their families as Inter Miami head coach Javier Mascherano heavily rotated his lineup ahead of Wednesday’s massive Concacaf Champions Cup semifinal second leg against Supporters’ Shield-leading Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
Their absence, however, did absolutely nothing to diminish the shock, awe and exultation of FC Dallas at Chase Stadium as they pulled off one of the more remarkable comebacks in recent MLS memory on Sunday afternoon – in fact, the gobsmacked expressions on the faces of Miami’s superstars only added to the spectacle.
Unbeaten no more
Rallying from a 3-1 deficit with less than half an hour to go, the North Texans reeled off three goals in 16 chaotic minutes to snatch a 4-3 win which inflicted the Herons’ first league loss of the season and extended their own unbeaten road record in 2025 (3W-0L-3D). It’s a signature result of first-year coach Eric Quill’s fledgling tenure, while in turn dialing up the pressure on Mascherano & Co. as they prepare to attack Vancouver’s 2-0 aggregate lead in CCC at the same stadium in 72 hours or so.
“It’s not easy. It’s not easy,” a crestfallen Mascherano told reporters in Spanish afterward. “The truth is that we played a very good game for 60, 65 minutes, during which we fell behind and rallied, which isn’t easy. And nothing. Unfortunately, I’m responsible. I made a mistake in my reading of the game, and well, today I couldn’t help them.
“The players, of course, nothing to fault,” the Argentine later added, pointing to his own formation and personnel changes as he repeatedly took the blame for the stunning turnabout. “Today is my responsibility. It’s my fault, not being able to help the players with the correct changes, or reading the game correctly to be able to get the victory.”
Dallas dig deep
Even with Messi out, Miami remain the gold standard for much of MLS and the raw emotions of this game were palpable on both sides. Quill found his wife Susan in the Fort Lauderdale crowd and hopped the advertising boards to share a long embrace after the final whistle, then waxed philosophical in his postgame press conference.
“I’m just really proud of the collective. They’ve been training so hard,” said Quill, who helped spark the remontada by shifting from a 4-2-3-1 shape to a 3-4-3 and bringing on Brazilian attacker Pedrinho, who bagged a goal and an assist in 32 minutes. “This is becoming a team across the board. They’re rooting for each other, they’re working for each other, they’re wanting the best for each other, even in the bad times. And that’s a true mark of a great team in the making.
“We’ve got to stay humble and hungry now and not rely on just this emotion of the game, and we’ve got to keep growing and climbing the table, keep getting better. But this was a win for the ages, and they deserve it.”
It’s about more than just talent — it’s about passion. pic.twitter.com/WjYdN4cIEO
— FC Dallas (@FCDallas) April 27, 2025
Never give up
Dallas’ resilience was interwoven with Miami’s fragility, as the Herons’ 2024 patterns of recurring defensive breakdowns reared their ugly heads after some encouraging signs of growth under Mascherano. FCD fullback Shaq Moore opened the scoring early via one such instance, and after nearly an hour of composed response, they cropped up yet again in the dying stages.
Notably, Dallas achieved this wild result with their star striker Petar Musa still sidelined by an ankle injury and playmaker Lucho Acosta mostly quiet on the night. Now they will seek to carry some of the magic home to Toyota Stadium, where they’re just 1W-3L-0D thus far.
“The mentality in this team, this is a team that’s never defeated, anywhere, against any opponent,” Acosta told MLS Season Pass postgame. “We have a winning mentality, this team, and we’re on the right track.
“We have a very different mentality than the one we play at home. We have to continue at home doing what we did today.”
Quill called on his team to build their belief with this achievement.
“I hope it gives us confidence to believe we can play with anybody. The narrative about Miami, the pundits, everybody crowning them the best team in MLS and yes, Messi wasn’t there. Suárez wasn’t there,” he said.
“Take nothing away, this is a quality Miami team, even missing those pieces. This team is for real. And we went toe to toe. We had a bright start, and then we fell apart, and we regained ourselves, but never stopped believing.”
Looking forward
For IMCF, the nature of the loss deepened its impact beyond the points dropped, though another dramatic CCC comeback like the one they pulled off against LAFC in the quarterfinals would go a long way toward making Sunday a footnote.
“We are conscious that on Wednesday we have to play again and that we’re going to have to generate [scoring] situations. Today was a match where we made three goals and we left with our hands empty,” said Mascherano.
“Leo’s fine,” he noted of Messi’s status. “Obviously we decided, with the rest of the players, to reserve him after a match like Vancouver, on a synthetic field, six or seven hours [flight from Vancouver]. He trained well [on Saturday], and he’s ready.”
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