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Preview: Inter Miami visit New York Red Bulls

Preview: Inter Miami visit New York Red Bulls

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Inter Miami’s packed schedule of matches continues with their ninth game in little over a month, as they travel to New Jersey to face the New York Red Bulls.

By James Nalton

They’ll be looking to get back to winning ways after a heavy defeat in midweek, but could face a tough test at the Sports Illustrated Arena.

A bump in the road to recovery

Inter Miami come into this game on the back of a first league defeat in seven games. A game which also ended a five-game winning streak. 

It was a battle between two of the best players in the league, Lionel Messi and Evander, which was won by the latter as Cincinnati emerged as 3-0 winners at home, with Evander scoring twice.

It was the first Inter Miami MLS game in seven to not feature goals for both teams, and only the third MLS game this season in which Inter Miami have failed to score.

It dented their quest to catch the teams at the top of the table, especially as league leaders Philadelphia Union scraped a win against Montréal. 

Miami remain eight points off the top with three games in hand, so despite this hiccup, they could still overtake these teams if they win all of those games.

Will Messi play?

Messi is a doubt for the game against the Red Bulls, with head coach Javier Mascherano commenting that they will decide after training on Friday whether he will be fit to play on Saturday night.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if they left it until the day of the game itself to decide whether Messi can play, such is his importance to the team.

If he does miss out, it will be interesting to see how the team performs in his absence, given he’s scored 11 goals in their last seven games.

One player who will definitely be missing is goalkeeper Oscar Ustari. Mascherano has indicated that Rocco Ríos Novo will take his place.

Red Bulls recovery

Assessments of the Red Bulls this season will depend on how convincing they are in qualifying for the post-season from here on in, and the post-season itself.

So far, they’ve been hit and miss, epitomised by their previous game, against New England Revolution, in which they were behind 2-0 at half time after a poor showing, and then played some good stuff to turn the game around dramatically and win 5-3. It was their first win in six games.

There are still signs of pressing from the Red Bulls — a franchise from whom such a style still seems to be expected. 

They are third in the league for possession won in the final third per match, and second in the league for successful tackles per match behind a Philadelphia Union team who have traces of Red Bull in their own tactics.

Summer signing Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting is already in double figures for the season with 13 goals, while Emil Forsberg still has the potential to be a game’s star player.

Prediction

If Messi plays, Inter Miami win. If he doesn’t, the Red Bulls have a chance, but a draw might be on the cards.

(Cover Image from IMAGO)

You can follow every match from MLS live this season with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage including shot maps, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Preview: Inter Miami visit New York Red Bulls

Inter Miami’s packed schedule of matches continues with their ninth game in little over a month, as they travel to New Jersey to face the New York Red Bulls.

By James Nalton

They’ll be looking to get back to winning ways after a heavy defeat in midweek, but could face a tough test at the Sports Illustrated Arena.

A bump in the road to recovery

Inter Miami come into this game on the back of a first league defeat in seven games. A game which also ended a five-game winning streak. 

It was a battle between two of the best players in the league, Lionel Messi and Evander, which was won by the latter as Cincinnati emerged as 3-0 winners at home, with Evander scoring twice.

It was the first Inter Miami MLS game in seven to not feature goals for both teams, and only the third MLS game this season in which Inter Miami have failed to score.

It dented their quest to catch the teams at the top of the table, especially as league leaders Philadelphia Union scraped a win against Montréal. 

Miami remain eight points off the top with three games in hand, so despite this hiccup, they could still overtake these teams if they win all of those games.

Will Messi play?

Messi is a doubt for the game against the Red Bulls, with head coach Javier Mascherano commenting that they will decide after training on Friday whether he will be fit to play on Saturday night.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if they left it until the day of the game itself to decide whether Messi can play, such is his importance to the team.

If he does miss out, it will be interesting to see how the team performs in his absence, given he’s scored 11 goals in their last seven games.

One player who will definitely be missing is goalkeeper Oscar Ustari. Mascherano has indicated that Rocco Ríos Novo will take his place.

Red Bulls recovery

Assessments of the Red Bulls this season will depend on how convincing they are in qualifying for the post-season from here on in, and the post-season itself.

So far, they’ve been hit and miss, epitomised by their previous game, against New England Revolution, in which they were behind 2-0 at half time after a poor showing, and then played some good stuff to turn the game around dramatically and win 5-3. It was their first win in six games.

There are still signs of pressing from the Red Bulls — a franchise from whom such a style still seems to be expected. 

They are third in the league for possession won in the final third per match, and second in the league for successful tackles per match behind a Philadelphia Union team who have traces of Red Bull in their own tactics.

Summer signing Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting is already in double figures for the season with 13 goals, while Emil Forsberg still has the potential to be a game’s star player.

Prediction

If Messi plays, Inter Miami win. If he doesn’t, the Red Bulls have a chance, but a draw might be on the cards.

(Cover Image from IMAGO)

You can follow every match from MLS live this season with FotMob — featuring deep stats coverage including shot maps, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.