Crew Beats Miami, the defending champion, Messi-Less in the League Cup

Columbus Crew defeated Inter Miami 3-2 with to two goals from Diego Rossi in the second half, advancing them to the Leagues Cup quarterfinals on Tuesday.

The Uruguayan striker tied the game in the 69th minute and scored the game-winning goal in the 80th to eliminate Miami, who also top the MLS league standings this season.

The key player for Miami, Lionel Messi, was still out due to an ankle injury he sustained during Argentina’s Copa America final victory against Colombia one month prior.

With the win, the defending MLS champion Crew will visit New York City, who defeated Tigres 2-1, in a quarterfinal match on Saturday.

Inter Miami took a 1-0 lead thanks to goals from Paraguayan midfielder Matias Rojas and fellow countryman Diego Gomez in the tenth and 62nd minutes, respectively, but US striker Christian Ramirez responded for the Crew in the 67th, paving the way for Rossi’s game-winning brace.

The competition includes Mexican teams from Liga MX and MLS. Shortly after moving to Florida, Messi led Miami to the first-ever championship last year.

To get to the final eight, New York City pulled together.

The Tigres captain, Argentine midfielder Guido Pizarro, gave the team the lead with a header in the 18th minute, but Maxi Moralez, another Argentine midfielder, gave City the equalizer in the 20th.

In the 65th minute, Santiago Rodriguez, a Uruguayan, scored City’s winning goal.

Tai Baribo’s two goals helped the Philadelphia Union defeat the Cincinnati Bengals 4-2.

With goals from Israeli attacker Baribo in the 61st minute and Danish forward Mikael Uhre in the 51st, Philadelphia took a 2-0 lead.

In the 66th and 80th minutes, respectively, US defender DeAndre Yedlin and Czech midfielder Pavel Bucha equalized for Cincinnati.

Following goals by US replacement Quinn Sullivan in the 84th and Baribo in the 82nd, the Union rallied.

Mazatlan makes progress
Philadelphia’s next match is a home quarterfinal matchup against Mazatlan on Saturday. Mazatlan overcame Cruz Azul on penalties following a 2-2 draw in Washington.

Bryan Colula’s goal in the 40th minute and Edgar Barcenas’ goal in the first minute of stoppage time gave Mazatlan a 2-0 advantage.

In the fourth minute of the second half, Argentine defender Gonzalo Piovi was sent off, leaving Cruz Azul down to 10 men.

Cruz Azul, however, was far from finished as Colombian defender Willer Ditta added an equalizer in the first few minutes of stoppage time, and Uriel Antuna scored in the 84th minute.

Mazatlan advanced after winning 3-1 despite the inability of Antuna, Ditta, and Giorgos Giakoumakis to convert in penalties.

Colorado Rapids defeated Toluca 2-1 at home to advance.

Colorado’s goal came from Brazilian forward Rafael Navarro in the 45th minute, but Portuguese attacker Paulinho responded in the 83rd, paving the way for American Darren Yapi to score the game-winning goal in the sixth minute of stoppage time.

Colorado’s next match is a quarterfinal on Saturday against Club America, the 4-2 winners from Mexico, in St. Louis.

In the 86th minute, Uruguayan Brian Rodriguez scored for Club America via penalty kick, and in the eighth minute of stoppage time, his countryman Rodrigo Auirre added an additional goal.

In the 15th minute, Rodriguez scored his first goal; however, US player Indiana Vassilev tied the score for St. Louis in the 49th, and German midfielder Eduard Lowen gave the hosts the lead with a penalty kick in the 55th. Diego Valdes, a striker from Chile, tied the score for Club America in the 79th minute.

Defeating San Jose 4-1, the host LAFC secured a quarterfinal spot on Saturday in Seattle.

Argentine midfielder Hernan Lopez tied the score for the Earthquakes in the 41st minute, while Uruguayan striker Cristian Olivera gave LAFC the lead in the 17th.

In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Denis Bouanga of Gabon scored a penalty kick, giving LAFC a 2-1 lead at the half.

In the 61st and 66th minutes, respectively, goals by Mateusz Bogusz of Poland and Bouanga gave the home team a 4-1 lead.

After leaving AC Milan in May, all-time French goal leader Olivier Giroud made his LAFC match debut in the 71st minute.