Nashville are out for revenge after losing to the Herons in the CONCACAF Champions Cup and the 2023 Leagues Cup final.
Inter Miami got back to winning ways last weekend with a dramatic 3-2 victory over Sporting Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium. Sporting KC took an early lead in front of 72,000 fans but goals from Diego Gomez, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez completed a turnaround and gave Miami their first win in five matches.
The Herons are back to it this weekend with a home game against Nashville SC, with whom they have shared some memorable games in the recent past. It was Nashville that Miami defeated in the final of the 2023 Leagues Cup, the game that secured the club’s first piece of silverware and provided the climax for Messi’s incredible start to life in the US.
More recently, Inter Miami squeezed past Nashville in this year’s CONCACAF Champions Cup, with Messi again proving a decisive force across the two games. Will we see more Messi magic at Chase Stadium this weekend?
Will Messi play against Nashville?
Lionel Messi’s absence brought about the first difficult period for Inter Miami in the 2024 campaign. He hobbled off midway through the Herons’ second leg win over Nashville and Miami won just one of the four games played without the Argentine.
Having recovered from the hamstring complaint Messi looks to be back to full fitness and he is expected to play from the start on Saturday. Despite the injury Messi has been in his own inimitable form in MLS this year, notching five goals and five assists in his five appearances to date. Our friends at Sofascore rank him as the top performer in MLS so far this season...
The availability of Lionel Messi appears to be the deciding factor in Miami’s success this year but he is far from the only star in this incredible roster. Jordi Alba has been a key player since his arrival, providing some much-needed energy along with his obvious technical talents. However indications suggest that the Spaniard will not play on Saturday after appearing to suffer a hamstring injury in the win over Sporting KC.
The Herons were leading 3-2 in the final stages when Jordi Alba pulled up on the edge of the Sporting penalty box, forcing him to be substituted. There was no contact and no other player near him when he sustained the injury, suggesting that it is a muscular issue.
Alba joins the likes of Ian Fray, Facundo Farias and Robert Robinson on the injury list. The Herons may, however, be able to welcome back some recent injuries this weekend. Leonardo Campana and Robert Taylor were both rules out of the trip to Kansas City but they have been seen in Miami training this week.