Inter Miami have suffered their first major setback of the 2025 season after being eliminated from the CONCACAF Champions Cup semi-final by the Vancouver Whitecaps.
In the first-leg clash in Canada, Inter Miami were without Lionel Messi and other star names, as a part of scheduled rest and they slipped to a 2-0 defeat.
With their big guns back, Inter Miami looked set for a revival as Jordi Alba opened the scoring for the Herons just nine minutes into the second leg, keeping their comeback hopes alive.
However, Vancouver quickly hit their stride from that setback, and the clash ended in a 5-1 aggregate loss for Inter Miami.
Defeat goes down as a mark of frustration for Inter Miami in their first-ever CONCACAF Champions Cup semi-final appearance but their focus now moves on to other competitions.
Speaking after the match, head coach Javier Mascherano opened up about how the loss will impact his immediate plans.
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What did Javier Mascherano say after CONCACAF exit?
Inter Miami pulled off a comeback win against Los Angeles FC in the Champions Cup quarter-finals, after conceding a goal in the first leg, as they showed real resilience to make the final four.
Inter Miami and their fans were hopeful of more of the same against Vancouver, but they came up short, and Mascherano admitted both he and the players are hurting.
"We have to keep going and focus on MLS. I'm not even thinking about the Club World Cup. We've been competing in two tournaments, and done well, we reached the semifinals - something the club had never done before. But it hurts because we wanted to make the final," as per quotes from GOAL.
"That would have placed the club in a very important position. Still, we have to accept they were better - they beat us in key moments, in individual duels - and at this stage of a competition, those things matter a lot."
Inter Miami are currently fifth in the MLS table with 18 points from nine matches. Up next, they face NY Red Bulls in league action on May 3 at Chase Stadium.
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