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CF Monterrey advanced to the Concacaf Champions Cup Round of 16 after defeating Comunicaciones FC 7-1 on aggregate. Their next opponent is FC Cincinnati, and the winner of this matchup has the chance to face Inter Miami.
A matchup against the South Florida club would see Sergio Canales play against familiar foes in Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba. The Rayados star has had countless encounters against these four players while playing in La Liga.
In a recent interview with MARCA, Canales noted what colliding against these four former FC Barcelona players would mean.
“I understand that the desire for players to come—not only Leo Messi but also Luis Suárez, Jordi Alba, [and] Busquets, who are top players in the world and have won everything—is a massive attraction for the city,” Canales told the media outlet.
“I have been lucky enough to play against them many times, with the luck of being able to win sometimes, and the truth is that they are unusual players. Logically, there is that hope, but we have to focus more on the next round because nowadays, in football, it is super difficult to beat anyone and, well, even more so in a competition that is so short.”
Rayados came close to facing Inter Miami during last year’s Leagues Cup tournament. However, Monterrey fell to Nashville SC in the semifinal, losing out on that chance to play against Messi.
Nonetheless, there’s an opportunity this year, and all the Mexican side needs to do is beat Cincinnati and hope that Inter Miami beats Nashville SC. If both teams advance, then it sets up for a quarterfinal showdown.