sport news Inter Miami ring in the Lionel Messi era by booking first trip to US Open Cup ... trends now
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Hours after Lionel Messi confirmed his plans to join Inter Miami this summer, the MLS side kept the momentum going with a 1-0 road win at the Birmingham Legion in the US Open Cup quarterfinals.
The result put Miami into the last four of the competition for the first time, with FC Cincinnati up next in the semifinals.
Miami found the decisive goal vs. USL Championship club Birmingham in the 56th minute as Nicolas Stefanelli bounced in a volley from close range.
Stefanelli was assisted by Corentin Jean from the right wing.
'This win is very important, not just for us as a team, but for the whole organization,' We made history today - it's the first time that the team makes semifinals,' said interim head coach Javier Morales, who took over for the ousted Phil Neville last week.
Nicolas Stefanelli notched the winning goal for Inter Miami in the US Open Cup win
Messi (left) is expected to join the MLS side which is owned by David Beckham (center), who also made a blockbuster move to MLS in 2007 with the LA Galaxy
