Lionel Messi stars as Miami blanks Cincinnati, reaches 1st East final

Tadeo Allende scored a second-half brace, Lionel Messi scored and picked up three assists and Inter Miami pulled away to a 4-0 victory over FC Cincinnati in Sunday’s Eastern Conference semifinal.

Mateo Silvetti, 19, also had a goal and an assist for No. 3 seed Miami, which continues its deepest MLS Cup Playoff run in club history by advancing to its first East final.

It will host No. 5 seed New York City FC, which shut out top-seeded Philadelphia Union 1-0 on Sunday night.

Cincinnati was eliminated in a home match for a third consecutive postseason while falling a match short of reaching its second East final.

Miami’s second consecutive 4-0 playoff win – after earning a home victory over Nashville SC in the decisive game of the round one series two weeks ago – came as manager Javier Mascherano decided not to return striker Luis Suarez to the starting lineup.

Suarez, who was previously Messi’s longtime teammate at FC Barcelona, served a red-card suspension in the final Nashville match, but had 10 goals and 10 assists in the regular season.

But Messi and a more youthful Miami front four have appeared to reach another level over the last 180 minutes.

Messi has six goals and six assists this postseason – contributing to every single Miami tally – after he scored 29 goals and added 19 assists during what is likely to be a second consecutive MLS MVP-winning regular season.

On Sunday, he scored his goal in the 19th minute during what was an evenly poised opening to the match. Jodi Alba created the opportunity when he stepped forward from his left back position to intercept a Cincinnati pass and create a transition opportunity.

Eventually Silvetti got the ball in space on the left and delivered an outswinging cross that Messi met in stride with a firm header past goalkeeper Roman Celentano.

Silvetti doubled Miami’s lead in the 57th minute on a sequence that began from a throw-in on the right.

Allende did extremely well to receive the throw, then turn his body quickly to elude a defender and spot Messi in space near the penalty arc.

Messi kept the ball moving right to left with a layoff into Silvetti’s path, who dispatched an excellent curling finish beyond Celentano and inside the far right post.

Allende added his brace in the 62nd and 74th minutes, both on transition opportunities. Messi took the ball off Evander on the first to create the break, and the final throughball on both.