Luis Suárez scored the game-winning penalty kick, as Inter Miami rallied to beat Necaxa in the Leagues Cup on Sunday after losing Lionel Messi to a hamstring injury in the opening minutes.
Jordi Alba had the tying goal on a header the made it 2-2 in the second minute of stoppage time to force the shootout.
Inter Miami then converted all five of its penalty kicks, and goalkeeper Rocco Ríos Novo denied Tomás Badaloni in the third round of the shootout. Suárez hit the winning shot into the top left corner.
Both teams were reduced to 10 men by the end of the match after Inter Miami’s Maximiliano Falcon was ejected for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity with a 17th-minute foul, while Necaxa’s Cristian Calderon received a second yellow card in the 60th minute.
Messi was injured around the eighth minute when he fell while being challenged by a pair of defenders near the penalty area. He walked slowly toward the Inter Miami bench before sitting down on the pitch. Trainers came out and worked on his right upper thigh area before he subbed out in the 11th.
AS IT HAPPENED | INTER MIAMI VS NECAXA, LEAGUES CUP 2025
Telasco Segovia put his side ahead 1-0 minute after Messi exited on a feed from Inter Miami newcomer Rodrigo De Paul, who had two assists in just his second match with the club. It was Segovia’s second goal of the tournament.
Badaloni tied it at 1 on a shot that he tapped past Ríos Novo to the bottom left corner in the 33rd minute.
Ricardo Monreal put the Mexican club ahead on what looked to be the winning score in the 81st minute before veteran left back Alba snapped a header into the back of the net after meeting De Paul’s free kick.
