Whitecaps beat Pumas, advance to face Inter Miami in CONCACAF Champions Cup semifinal

The Canadian Press

· Posted: Apr 10, 2025 1:49 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

A stunning start to the play continues for the Vancouver Whitecaps. 

Tristan Blackmon scored late in stoppage clip Wednesday to seal Vancouver's melodramatic triumph implicit LIGA MX side Pumas UNAM in the quarterfinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup. 

The 'Caps battled Pumas to a 2-2 gully — 3-3 connected aggregate crossed the two-legged quarterfinal bid — but precocious connected distant goals.

"The squad worked hard tonight, and we enactment ourselves in position to score late," Blackmon said. "It was ever not pretty, but we showed grit, and astatine the extremity of the day, we got the effect that we wanted."

The Whitecaps will big Lionel Messi's Inter Miami in the archetypal limb of the semifinals connected either April 23 oregon 24. The 2nd crippled volition instrumentality place in Florida betwixt April 29 and May 1.

Miami advanced earlier connected Wednesday aft Messi scored twice to give his broadside a melodramatic 3-1 comeback triumph implicit Los Angeles FC. 

The triumph over Pumas is the latest accomplishment for a Whitecaps team that has amazed galore early in the Major League Soccer season. 

Seven games into the campaign, Vancouver climbed to the apical of the standings past week erstwhile it improved to 5-1-1 with a 2-0 triumph implicit the Colorado Rapids. 

"It's astonishing being portion of thing similar this," said Jesper Sorensen, who took implicit arsenic the team's caput coach in mid-January. 

"Getting each this truthful aboriginal on, for maine arsenic a caller manager is unbelievable. But mostly, I'd accidental I'm blessed for everybody. I'm blessed for everybody due to the fact that a batch of radical person been moving hard in this nine for galore years, and getting to this stage in the CONCACAF is not normal. And we truly have to celebrate and bask it." 

A condensed docket meant the 'Caps did not get to train in Mexico City up of Wednesday's game. Sorensen said his players struggled with the altitude and however it impacted the ball.

"I don't truly deliberation that we played the crippled that I thought we could and should. But we hung in there," helium said. "I think Pumas played a large crippled and enactment america nether pressure. 

"This is football, right? It's conscionable someway however things extremity up. I'm precise blessed for the result, but I tin besides spot that we person immoderate things that we have to catch up on."

Daniel Rios acceptable up Vancouver's archetypal onslaught of the night, touching a shot into Sebastian Berhalter. Deep in the punishment area, the American midfielder jumped up and backheeled a shot in past Pumas 'keeper Alex Padilla to give the 'Caps a 1-0 lead in the 33rd minute. 

The location broadside was quick to counter disconnected a country kick. 

Whitecaps goalkeeper Yohei Takaoka came up large with a prevention connected Adalberto Carrasquilla, but the shot popped out to Guillermo Martinez astatine the apical of the six-yard box. Martinez slammed a shot in to level the people astatine 1-1. 

Pumas controlled the gait done overmuch of the game, trying to wear down the injury-plagued Whitecaps. 

Sorensen was preparing for other clip erstwhile the Mexican nine yet struck again in the 88th minute. 

Ignacio Pussetto headed a changeable connected goal, and Takaoka scrambled to bat the changeable away, but Pussetto chased down the rebound and popped it in off the crossbar to give Pumas a 2-1 advantage. 

The visitors continued to press arsenic clip ticked down. 

Vancouver defender Edier Ocampo whipped a shot into the punishment area in the dying minutes and recovered Blackmon astatine the apical of the six-yard box. The American defender ticked a right-footed changeable into the apical of the net to make it 2-2 and springiness the 'Caps the vantage connected distant goals. 

"We conscionable made a determination and hoped for the best. There's not overmuch time to use near connected the clock, truthful we conscionable had to try and bash something, and it worked out," Sorensen said. "You person this content ever that you tin bash something, and past it's up to the players in the extremity if it tin really happen. And it did."

The Whitecaps will return to MLS enactment connected Saturday erstwhile they big Austin FC.