Inter Miami boss Gerardo 'Tata' Martino praised 18-year-old Benjamin Cremaschi after his strong performance off the bench in his side's 4-4 (5-3 on pens) victory in the round of 16 in the 2023 Leagues Cup.
Several Inter Miami players have shown huge improvement since Lionel Messi arrived in south Florida. Drake Callender has earned plaudits for his underrated performances, and Robert Taylor has come to life playing in the front line alongside Messi.
Benjamin Cremaschi has also continued to work on his game, but he was already shining here and there before Messi arrived in MLS.
Martino chose to give new signing Diego Gomez a start in midfield over Cremaschi, but the 18-year-old would go on to prove that he shouldn't have been dropped from the starting lineup. Cremaschi not scored within a few minutes of being substituted on, he also converted the decisive penalty in the shootout that propelled Miami to the quarter-finals.
"I asked him and he was convinced [about] taking the shot and he wanted to do the fifth penalty," Martino said. "He didn't have any problems. Second, because he was one of the players who had the fewest minutes and above that, we saw in the 30 minutes that he played that he was very confident."
"You can see our mentality, how things have changed in this club, how we're willing to fight to the last second, especially with the quality players that we have," said Cremaschi of Messi, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba's impact at the club.
"We know that we could be down by a bunch of goals and still come back in a matter of seconds. It's just believing in what we can do and believing that we could always get a win," he added.
Despite Miami's horrific position in the Eastern Conference standings, Cremaschi was one of the lone bright spots in the team before Messi joined the Herons. In 18 leagues appearances, the youngster has totaled 1 goal and three assists, and has one goal and assist in the Leagues Cup thus far.
"I don't get tired of talking to him, I never will,” Cremaschi said about Messi. "It's amazing what he can do and nobody expected him to do what he's doing. He scored twice and two times in almost every game and it's just impressive."
"We can't wait so we keep on going like that and [he] helps us to get as far as we possibly can."
Inter Miami are now gearing up to take on fellow MLS opposition Charlotte FC in the quarter-finals of the 2023 Leagues Cup on August 11 a DRV PNK Stadium.
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This article was originally published on 90min as Tata Martino hails 'very confident' Benjamin Cremaschi in Leagues Cup triumph.