Without Messi and his former teammate Jordi Alba from Barcelona, Miami failed to match the ambition of Houston and had little cause for complaint about the result.
Injured Lionel Messi watched from the stands as the Houston Dynamo overcame Inter Miami 2-1 to claim the U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday.
Without Messi and his former teammate Jordi Alba from Barcelona, Miami failed to match the ambition of Houston and had little cause for complaint about the result.
After winning the Leagues Cup last month, Miami co-owner David Beckham had anticipated for another night of celebration for his team. He watched the game with former Real Madrid teammate Zinedine Zidane.
But Ben Olsen's superb Houston team gave Miami the runaround because it lacked focus and inspiration.
Messi's issue has been spoken in vague terms, with mentions of "muscle fatigue" and the coach Gerardo Martino mentioning "scars" from an earlier injury.
The World Cup champion missed Sunday's draw against Orlando City after being taken off during the first half of the MLS victory over Toronto last week.
Houston took the lead right away without having to worry about Messi, passing the ball around with assurance and purpose as Miami, who only had one of their three ex-Barca players on the pitch, Sergio Busquets, tried to gain a foothold in the match.
Nelson Quinones drove towards the far post, forcing Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender into a double save. Callender did well to get his legs to the follow-up shot from Corey Bair.
However, Houston took the lead in the 24th minute thanks to a flawless counterattack that saw Brazilian Artur feed the overlapping Gryphon Dorsey, who fired home at the near post.
Houston was completely in charge, distributing the ball with such quickness that Miami was left chasing shadows, and it didn't take long for Houston to double its lead.
Quinones, a Colombian winger, entered the penalty area from the left flank, and Miami's right back DeAndre Yedlin fell to the ground after making a desperate attempt. Amine Bassi, a French forward, was flawless from the start.
At the half, Miami head coach Gerard Martino made two substitutions, inserting Ecuadorian midfielder Dixon Arroyo and Venezuelan forward Josef Martinez.
Martinez missed a fantastic opportunity to put Miami back in the game in the 56th minute, but Benjamin Cremaschi forced Dynamo goalie Andrew Tarbell into a low save.
But while Inter continued to press for a goal, Houston made a breakaway and appeared to have won the game when Quinones scored after being set up by Bassi, but the goal was disallowed for offside following a VAR review.
After seizing an Argentinean Facundo Farias pass, Martinez gave Miami some late hope with a left-foot strike in stoppage time.
However, Miami's efforts came too little, too late, and Houston duly claimed a second U.S. Open Cup victory to add to their triumph in 2018.
Miami, which featured Messi prominently in its Leagues Cup victory last month, now faces a tough challenge to advance to the Major League Soccer play-offs due to the uncertainty surrounding the health of its Argentine star.