Sport
Inter Miami Qualify for Leagues Cup Knockout Stage Without Messi
Inter Miami CF has secured a spot in the knockout stage of the 2025 Leagues Cup after a solid 3-1 win over Pumas UNAM on Wednesday night, even without star captain Lionel Messi on the pitch. Messi, who is nursing a hamstring injury from the August 2 clash with Necaxa, watched from the sidelines at Chase Stadium. Despite not playing, he was visibly excited, celebrating each goal with his teammates.
Pumas took the lead early in the match, but Inter Miami quickly turned things around with goals from Luis Suárez, Rodrigo De Paul, and Tadeo Allende. Under coach Javier Mascherano, the team wrapped up the group stage with eight points. They picked up wins over Atlas and Pumas, drew against Necaxa, and earned an extra point by winning the post-draw penalty shootout 5-4.
This year’s Leagues Cup uses a new format where teams compete for points to determine their rankings going into the next stage. Inter Miami, who lifted the trophy in the first edition two years ago, are now back in strong form after falling short in last year’s round of 16.
Super Eagles defender Calvin Bassey has opened up about a difficult period in his career, revealing that he almost stepped away from football.
Speaking during a recent interview, Bassey shared that he once made a personal promise to himself to quit pursuing football professionally if he failed to secure a spot at a professional club.
“I remember being 15 and going into my final year, and I told myself that if I didn’t get into a professional club, I would quit football. It was that simple,” he said.
“I would just stop pursuing it seriously and only play for fun. Thank God I eventually got a club, because I honestly don’t know where I would be otherwise.”
It has been reported that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) fined Egypt $5,000 following their clash with Zimbabwe for failing to manage post-match media obligations.
It was noted that after the match, the Egyptian players ignored the media. This action was said to be a violation of CAF’s media regulations, which led to the fine being imposed.
Head of the Super Eagles, Eric Chelle, shared that the big-name players on the team are not happy about being benched.
He recalled when he took out Samuel Chukwueze during the match against Tanzania.
“Yes, of course, we’ve in this team a lot of big names. They are competitors; they aren’t happy when they go to the bench,” Chelle said at his post-match interview.”
“My job is to make choices, and we’re playing a 4-4-2 diamond, and at this moment I feel we have to protect the wing.”
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Super Eagles Star Calvin Bassey Opens Up on Nearly Walking Away from Football
