(Fort Lauderdale) Deprived of its superstar Lionel Messi, injured, Inter Miami lost in the final of the United States Cup against the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday (2-1), in its stadium in Fort Lauderdale.

After its victory in the League Cup in August, Inter Miami was unable to win a second trophy, handicapped by the absence on the field of ex-Barça stars Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba.

A certain vagueness surrounds the physical state of Messi, present in the stands on Wednesday, since he returned from the selection at the beginning of September with “muscle fatigue”, according to his trainer Gerardo “Tata” Martino. The 36-year-old world champion from Argentina has since played just 37 minutes against Toronto on September 20, missing three games.

Without its playing master, who arrived in July after a bitter experience at Paris Saint-Germain, Miami, slow and overwhelmed, conceded two goals in the first half, from a powerful strike from Griffin Dorsey (24th) and from a penalty from former Nancy player Amine Bassi (33rd).

Josef Martinez reduced the score in added time (90th 2), under the eyes of David Beckham, Zinédine Zidane and even NBA star James Harden, who came to encourage Houston, where he played for nine years for the basketball franchise of Rockets.

The United States Cup is the oldest soccer competition in the country, created in 1914, and open to professional and amateur clubs alike.

In the championship, Inter Miami is 14th and penultimate in the Eastern Conference, five points from the first qualifying place for the playoffs, with still five games to play.