LAFC blanks Messi, Miami in 1st leg of CONCACAF Champions Cup quarterfinal

LOS ANGELES — Stars and famous faces were in the stands and on the pitch at BMO Stadium on Wednesday night as CONCACAF Champions Cup action returned for a glitzy quarterfinal pitting the Los Angeles Football Club and Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami CF.

Despite the many familiar names operating on both sides of the ball, it was LAFC’s Nathan Ordaz, a 21-year-old homegrown product from Van Nuys, who deserved the attention.

Ordaz’s goal in the 57th minute held up as LAFC outworked and stifled the previously unbeaten Herons, claiming a confidence-boosting 1-0 victory in the first leg of the two-match series in front of a sell-out crowd of 22,207.

Receiving the ball in the middle of the field from Mark Delgado, Ordaz turned toward goal while holding off iconic Spanish midfielder Sergio Busquets. Three quick touches gave Ordaz the room he needed to strike a low knuckler from 24 yards out that cleared diving Argentine goalkeeper Oscar Ustari’s outstretched arms.

“Nobody was stepping up,” Ordaz said. “These Champions League balls are more like volleyballs. They fly weird. So if you’re open, shoot it. That ball is going to fly in an interesting way, and that’s what happened. It went in.

“As a forward you have to score goals. To do it against Inter Miami, a great team, and Messi, it feels good.”

The goal was the second of the tournament for Ordaz, who has been LAFC’s most improved player after ranking at the bottom of player fitness marks last year. This offseason Ordaz found the physical and mental edge he lacked, and has gone on to build layers of trust for his coaches and teammates through the team’s 11 matches.

“He was the most lazy player in the team last year,” fullback Sergi Palencia said. “Most lazy. This offseason I don’t know what happen. He’s a beast.”

Prior to Ordaz’s strike, neither team had manufactured an overtly dangerous chance, but not for a lack of effort or quality.

The goal came as LAFC turned up the temperature on Miami, whose inability to connect through saw Messi and Suarez with more shakes of the head and skyward glances than shots on goal.

“We have to accept the loss but we know we have another game in Miami with our people, with our supporters,” Miami head coach Javier Mascherano said. “We need their support to get through to the semifinals so we’ll try in the next week to do the right thing.”

The LAFC midfield did its job and the team’s collective defending was enough to keep it scoreless through the first half, when Coach Steve Cherundolo’s team struck a balanced tone – avoiding the pitfalls of over-aggressiveness and the trap of timidity.

LAFC and Ordaz also benefited from Jamaican referee Oshane Nation’s decision not to penalize the youngster who started in the middle of the attack between Denis Bouanga and Cengiz Ünder.

“We knew Nate would run for us with and without the ball,” Cherundolo said. “He worked extremely hard. Understood what areas to press, what areas to occupy defensively, and his ability to run in behind comes natural for him. We knew that would be a threat and a lot to handle for their center backs.”

A skirmish between Ordaz and defender Maxi Falcón midway through the first half resulted in a video review for a red card, but Nation ruled the infraction of an arm to the face only required a yellow. Cherundolo showed much faith in Ordaz, leaving him in the match until the 90th minute when Marlon provided some defensive insurance.

“He’s earned the trust,” Cherundolo said when asked about keeping Ordaz playing in the game despite the first-half warning. “Trust is something you don’t just give. You earn it and Nate has earned that trust. He shows it in training. He’s come along really well this season, worked really hard in the offseason, and he’s taken his chance. He’s earned the right to play.”

Miami’s best looks came on free kicks from the top of the box, including one in stoppage time that Messi struck over the crossbar. Suarez took three shots, but none found the target.

LAFC goalkeeper Hugo Lloris made three saves to keep the clean sheet.

“We were active,” Cherundolo said of his team’s collective defensive effort. “I think he always had a black jersey in front of [Messi]. That’s the point. You can’t defend nor can you always shut down Jordi Alba, Busquets or Suarez. No disrespect to other players on the team, they have an unbelievable roster, but those guys are going to get a chance or two.

“I think we saw a complete performance, a good one from the guys. They invested a lot.”

Two of the best teams in MLS shift their focus to regular-season games on the weekend before the second leg at Fort Lauderdale’s Chase Stadium, where another positive result would send LAFC to the semifinal round against either the Vancouver Whitecaps or Pumas of Liga MX, who played to a 1-1 draw in their first leg.

LAFC has reached the CONCACAF final in two previous appearances, 2020 and 2023, while Miami fell to Monterrey in the quarters in 2024. With Wednesday’s outcome, Miami is 0-3 all time in this stage of the continental tournament.

“It was electric. It was loud. A lot like a playoff match for LAFC,” Cherundolo said. “We haven’t felt that in this building in a long time, such a late kick with such an electric atmosphere. Yes our players absolutely feed off of that and they rose to the occasion tonight.”

NOTES

Miami had won seven straight matches across all competitions while starting 8-0-1 under Mascherano. … The packed crowd included Golden State Warriors stars Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler, whose team faces the Lakers on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena.