It was a very difficult outcome for Inter Miami. The elimination of the Concachampions at the hands of Rayados de Monterrey, which beat them 3-1 in the second leg of the quarterfinals, was a serious blow to the United States franchise. His coach, Gerardo Martinotried to explain the setback with arguments that sounded like excuses: the coach assured that the MLS budget restrictions put American teams at a disadvantage compared to those that compete in the Mexican competition.
He was not self-critical, he did not talk about the difference in the game nor the complete dominance of Rayados in the series (in the first leg they also won, but by 2-1) and he insisted that it is necessary to modify some measures of the MLS: “I maintain that the teams with the best squad in Mexican soccer accessed this instance of the Champions Cup. I’m talking about America, Monterrey and Tigres. As long as the MLS does not release rules to have better squads and that absences and injuries can be replaced more easily, there will be an advantage“Tata explained at a press conference.
According to Martino, as long as the MLS does not end with a salary cap that does not allow its teams to spend freely on the formation of squads, except with three designated players who can be offered contracts without restrictions, Mexico’s dominance will not change. .
In addition, the Mexican media continued with the controversy that broke out in the first game in Miami, when some discussions occurred in the locker room area. That is why they asked him why he did not greet Fernando Ortiz, the Rayados coach: “It didn’t happen (to greet each other), it’s not important either. Coaches are important when we lose and not when we win”.
Ortiz’s word
For Fernando Ortiz It was a perfect plan that he drew up for this Rayados quarterfinal series against Inter Miami. The Argentine coach of the Mexican team was also the protagonist of this match, because all eyes were on him, since in the first duel he faced Lionel Messi in the locker room area in Miami and from there the weather was hotter than ever . That is why the Mexican media asked him why he did not greet Messi before the rematch in Monterrey: “For me he is the best player in the history of this sport, I never wanted to offend anyone or disrespect anyone, I gave my opinion regarding what I still think, that greeting was not given, I did not know how he was going to react, my respect you will have it for life”.
In addition, the Rayados coach explained how he planned the second game to qualify for the semifinals of the Concachampions: “The boys understood where the game would be played, we knew they would dominate with the ball, we wanted them to get desperate, close the spaces so they wouldn’t find the inside game, when we had to hit, they hit. It was intelligence of the players”.
In the midst of the euphoria over the classification, Ortiz sought to lower expectations to bring calm to his team: “We have just passed the round, we are in a semi-final, you have to enjoy today (last night), on Saturday we have an important match for the League. I can’t venture to think if we are favorites or not”.
The mockery of the Mexican media
The Mexican media were very aware of this crossing between Rayados de Monterrey and Inter Miami. But especially, the focus was placed on Messi. Although the man from Rosario did not participate in the first game due to an injury, in this rematch he could not impose all his talent to advance his team in the Concachampions, which is why some newspapers made fun of the captain of the Argentine team.
The newspaper Récord was the cruelest to Messi, since on its cover of the day they headlined: “Simple and semis.”. The detail that sets the tone of the mockery is that over the word “Sencillito” they placed a cut-out photo of Messi’s silhouette. Furthermore, in its web version, the chronicle of the match was also titled with a little more aggressiveness, since they put an image of the Argentine hit by defeat and the home title is: “Go over there stupid”. In the text that accompanies this title, the tone is far from being harsh with the Argentine, even at the beginning of the chronicle they value Messi’s visit to Monterrey: “Wednesday, April 10, 2024, will be the date that will be marked by the visit of Inter Miami to the home of the Rayados de Monterrey, where with a full house, thanks to the presence of Lionel Andrés Messi, and a final atmosphere , the locals managed to advance to the semifinal of the Concacaf Champions League”.
Not all the media were mocking: mediotiempo.com used a photo of Messi to illustrate Inter’s elimination, although it titled: “Historical ticket!”. While El Universal also focuses on the Rosario, but without mockery or offenses: “Rayados humiliates Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami and advances without problems to the semi-finals of the Concachampions”.
Another of the Mexican newspapers that reflected Rayados’ victory was Excelsior, which published on its front page in the web version: “Rayados mercilessly overwhelms Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami”. While El Heraldo also focused on Messi and not on Rayados: “Messi is out of Concacaf”. And the newspaper El Norte, from Monterrey, headlined: “Imposing! Rayados wins Messi and Miami”.
