Soccer <\/p>\n
Inter Miami<\/a> fly from coast to coast to visit LAFC<\/a> at BMO Stadium Wednesday night, and April meetings between two MLS sides don\u2019t get much bigger than this one (11:30 pm ET | FS1, TUDN, ViX).<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n It\u2019s the first leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup<\/a> quarterfinal clash, with the winner of the home-and-home series advancing to meet either Vancouver<\/a> or Pumas UNAM in the semifinals of North America’s top club competition.<\/p>\n Several of the league\u2019s biggest names will take the stage some 13 miles south of the famed Hollywood sign on Mount Lee, and their performances will go a long way towards deciding which of these powerhouses will carry the MLS banner into the business end of ConcaChampions, perhaps the most elusive title on offer in this part of the world.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Any conversation about that star power inevitably includes Leo Messi<\/a>, and it appears the Argentine legend will be available for the Herons\u2019 biggest match of the season thus far \u2013 albeit perhaps not as a starter, but more likely the most game-changing of substitutes.<\/p>\n \u201cThe plan is for him to be able to recover and travel to Los Angeles,\u201d coach Javier Mascherano told reporters in Spanish after Messi came off the bench to score what proved the game-winning goal in Saturday\u2019s 2-1 home win<\/a> over fellow Eastern Conference pacesetters Philadelphia Union<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe minutes that he played today, he played because he felt good \u2013 we didn’t risk him for 90 minutes. But I think it did him good to play some 45 minutes with stoppage time. If nothing strange happens, the plan is for him to travel.\u201d<\/p>\n After missing out on national team duty during the March international window due to an adductor injury, Messi had enough to make the difference against the Union, pushing Miami to the top of the Supporters\u2019 Shield standings with a game in hand and keeping them undefeated across all competitions. Even short of full fitness, a status applied to him in some form or another for most of the young season to date, the GOAT remains dominant, as he showed with a relatively rare right-footed finish within seconds of his entry.<\/p>\n \u201cWe already know the difference he makes,\u201d said his young teammate Toto Avil\u00e9s<\/a> in Spanish afterward. \u201cThe instant he enters, the game changes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) March 30, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Wednesday\u2019s hosts are not short on luminaries, either. Winger Denis Bouanga<\/a> has priors in CCC, having earned Golden Boot and Best XI honors in the 2023 tournament, and he\u2019s already bagged three goals and an assist in this year\u2019s edition. He\u2019s yet to score in league action, however, which may be a factor in LAFC\u2019s recent slide down the West table.<\/p>\n After Saturday\u2019s 3-2 loss<\/a> at San Diego FC<\/a>, the Black & Gold are 1W-4L-0D in their last five matches, with five goals scored and 11 conceded, even if one of those losses carries the context of being a second-leg CCC game at Columbus<\/a>, into which LAFC carried a 3-0 first-leg advantage. The Angelinos will aim to turn to a new Concacaf page after sleepwalking through the opening phases of their weekend setback.<\/p>\n \u201cWe showed a side of us that we’ve also shown in other games in the season, and it’s a little too timid and passive, with some negative body language, negative passing structure, which we don’t want to see,\u201d said coach Steve Cherundolo. \u201cIt’s certainly things we don’t actively train and ask our players to do. And when we do that, we look sluggish, and San Diego took full advantage of that in the first 30 minutes.<\/p>\n \u201cWe really have unfortunately shown some vulnerability when we’re too passive. And when we’re aggressive and we are confident and play how we want to play and stay connected, I think we’re quite dangerous and very good. So we need to make sure that we’re only showing the good side.\u201d<\/p>\n Bouanga played as a No. 9 rather than his usual left wing spot against SDFC, with injury concerns swirling around strikers Jeremy Ebobisse<\/a> and Olivier Giroud<\/a>. The latter\u2019s struggles in 2025 have become a central topic around LAFC; Wednesday would be a great time for him to find another gear.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u2014 Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) March 29, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n Beyond Messi\u2019s situation, IMCF also had Tadeo Allende<\/a>, David Mart\u00ednez<\/a>, David Ruiz<\/a>, Marcelo Weigandt<\/a> and Ryan Sailor<\/a> nursing injuries of one degree or another heading into the weekend, while several others racked up significant mileage on international duty. The Herons\u2019 busy calendar is already testing the squad depth they worked to enhance over the winter; so far, so good, according to Mascherano, who\u2019s had role players like Telasco Segovia<\/a>, Faf\u00e0 Picault<\/a> and Robert Taylor<\/a> step up repeatedly in the opening months.<\/p>\n Will that be the case again this week?<\/p>\n \u201cWe had a lot of players that needed the break to recuperate and guys who were out playing internationally and sometimes this type of game, you have to find a way,\u201d he said on Saturday. \u201cThis is where you see the depth of this club and how we will need everybody to step up in such a long season.<\/p>\n \u201cWe try to help the players understand that it\u2019s not the quantity, but the quality of the minutes. Many times it’s hard for players to understand that 20, 30 minutes are vital, and little by little, the facts are showing them, and they’re convinced about this.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nMessi recharged<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Star-studded showdown<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Supporting cast steps up<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n