Inter Miami will be desperate to return to winning ways in the MLS when they take on the Colorado Rapids at Chase Stadium in Florida on Sunday morning.
The hosts are in second place in the Eastern Conference standings after seven games, while the visitors are seventh in the West with six games in the rearview mirror.
Match preview
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After a very promising start to the season, things have begun to spiral downward for Inter Miami, who are now on the verge of exiting the CONCACAF Champions League following a painful 2-1 home loss to Monterrey in midweek.
Tomas Aviles gave the Herons the lead against the Liga MX outfit in the first half, but without Lionel Messi in the squad - despite being marked for a potential return against Rayados - Miami collapsed in the second period after they were reduced to 10 men via David Ruiz's sending off.
The Argentine has now missed four league matches for Tata Martino's side since their 5-0 demolition of Orlando City at the start of March, and during his absence, the Herons have only earned four points, three of which came in a win over DC United with the further point being earned this past weekend in a 1-1 draw against New York City.
Other results during Messi's absence included a 3-2 defeat against Montreal and a total battering at the hands of the New York Red Bulls, who tore apart the Miami defence to secure a 4-0 win at a rain-soaked Red Bull Arena a fortnight ago.
Looking further back, the Herons have now only won two of the 12 matches they played without Messi since his arrival at South Beach in July 2023, and without him on the field the side seems to lack leadership, as was evident at various points in the midweek loss to Monterrey.
With one eye on the return leg against Rayados just four days after this match against Colorado, it will be interesting to see how the hosts approach this game, especially considering their already extensive injury list.
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After suffering an opening day hammering by the Portland Timbers, Colorado Rapids fans would have been fearing the worst again this season after seeing their side end last term rock bottom in the West, with just five wins and a total of 27 points posted in 34 league games.
However, since then, they have made notable improvements and come into gameweek seven in the final automatic playoff qualification spot in the Western Conference with eight points, just two shy of the top five teams in the standings.
The Rapids played host to Los Angeles FC in their last league match and showed tremendous fighting spirit to come from 2-1 down to clinch a 3-2 victory, thanks to a Djordje Mihailovic brace in the final 10 minutes of regulation time.
Under the guidance of former Leeds United assistant manager Chris Armas, the Rapids have recorded two wins, two draws and two losses in their six league games to date and are gunning for a third unbeaten match on the road following a 2-1 win over Real Salt lake and a 1-1 draw away to the Seattle Sounders last month.
While the visitors do not boast the same star-studded lineup as their opponents, they will be quietly confident heading to Fort Lauderdale, knowing that all the pressure will be firmly piled on the hosts to find a result in this one.
Team News
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Miami have faced criticism for their taxing preseason, which included trips to El Salvador, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and Tokyo, which many believe has contributed heavily to injuries sustained by their players.
Aside from Messi, Facundo Farias, Ian Fray, Nicolas Freire, Sergii Kryvtsov, Federico Redondo, Robbie Robinson, and Benjamin Cremaschi are also out of action, while Luis Suarez has been playing through a knee injury.
Suarez, at 37 years of age, has had to shoulder the majority of the attacking burden in the absence of his skipper but has obliged so far, scoring seven goals and providing five assists across 10 appearances in all competitions.
The Rapids are also missing a few players at the moment, starting with centre-back Daniel Chacon Salas, who sustained a cruciate ligament tear last season and is still some way from returning to first team action.
Jonathan Lewis (knee), Connor Ronan (knee) and Jasper Loffelsend (hamstring) are the other players ruled out due to injury, although the latter is expected to return to training by the end of this month.
Inter Miami possible starting lineup:
Calendar; Weigandt, Sailor, Aviles, Alba; Ruiz, Busquets, Gomez; Gressel, Suarez, Taylor
Colorado Rapids possible starting lineup:
Steffen; Rosenberry, Bombito, Maxso, Vines; Bassett, Larraz; Harris, Mihailovic, Cabral; Navarro
We say: Inter Miami 2-1 Colorado Rapids
Inter Miami must win this match to give the side a much-needed boost of confidence heading into their crunch Champions League clash in midweek. The Rapids are in decent form and will not make it easy for the hosts, but we feel the Herons will find a way to take all three points in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Devesh Jaganath
