Inter Miami CF VS Orlando City SC: Overview, predictions and alignments

Inter Miami CF assumes its first match of the season when they welcome Orlando City SC on Sunday evening.

After a draw of 3 to 3 with the earthquakes of San Jose, the Herons find themselves in a mediocre form, having won only once in their last six games all competitions. Wednesday in San Jose, it seemed that the frustrations had also reached Lionel Messi, the Argentinian needing to be discussed after referee Joe Dickerson sought to threaten a red card.

This draw intervened after the defeat of 4 to 1 of last week against the Minnesota United, the worst margin of defeat since Messi joined the team in the summer of 2023. In addition, the loss upset the co-owner David Beckham, who resumed the Instagram post of Minnesota, subtitled of “Pink Phony Club”.

Now Miami has a chance to go back to the column of victories against their rivals, which have been strongly in good shape, losing only twice this season and on a sequence of 10 undefeated games, beating the Charlotte FC 3-1.

With the tensions of a rivalry and the ink that always dried on the new extension of the Jordi Alba contract, Sunday takes place to be an attractive confrontation in the middle of the eight clashes of the week of rivalry.

“It is perhaps a new rivalry because of the age of our club, but it is nevertheless a rivalry,” said manager Javier Mascherano on Friday. “It is therefore important to play a good game, especially to return to victory.”

Here is everything you need to know about Inter Miami vs Orlando City SC on Sunday evening.

Current form (all competitions)

After a lively match and a draw of 3 to 3 against San Jose, Inter Miami can be happy to have their full complement of players for the match on Sunday after a few sought to approach potential suspensions.

Not only will they have no suspended player for the match, but they will also welcome striker Luis Suárez, who missed the two previous games for personal reasons which, according to Mascherano, were approved before the season.

“The first day I got to work, Luis told me that he had planned this trip, and when the moment had arrived, he had played almost all the matches, so we saw him as an opportunity to give him a rest,” said Mascherano about the absence of Suárez, the Uruguayan having played 17 games this season. “We did not know the fafa [Picault] And Allen [Obando] Also had a light injury. It happens. Not an excuse. We have adapted and we are moving forward. »»

Meanwhile, it will also be the first game since Alba signed a contract extension throughout the 2027 season, making him the first of the former FC Barcelona quartet to commit his future. However, he told the media on Friday that his decision was purely personal and would not mean what Messi and his other teammates thought.

Apart from news, Miami hopes to solidify things defensively. They granted 18 goals against 12 games, a quarter of the clubs of the Eastern Conference. Much of this could fall on Maxi Falcon to Center Back, who was dull despite the most minutes of any central defender this season.

Messi is about to start alongside Suárez in the attack, while Picault and Obando remain in doubt for the match, leaving the herons without two of their faster attackers. However, their ability to score goals was not a problem, it is no longer the problem of adversaries.

Inter Miami predicted programming against Orlando City (4-4-2): User; Alba, Falcon, Allen, Fray; Segovia, Busquets, Redondo, Picault; Messi, Suárez

After having spent a few weeks looking for new solutions to a problem that had not been completely posed, Orlando director, Oscar Pareja, brought together his trio attacker of Luis Muriel, Martín Ojeda and Marco Pašalić, and the trio has prospered in the last two games.

This season, the trio helped Orlando become the second best attack on the Eastern Conference with 26 goals in 13 games. Meanwhile, the defense has also risen as one of the most beautiful in MLS in recent weeks, conceding only four times in their last eight games.

They are currently enjoying the second sequence of 10 undefeated games in the history of the club, and goalkeeper Pedro Gallese has already kept five clean leaves this season.

Ojeda, in particular, will be monitored on Sunday. After starting the season in electric form, he became silent for a few weeks, but recently returned to his marked, finding the back of the net twice in his last two games and brought him back to eight goals and three assists on the season.

As for absences, the 4-2-3-1 of Orlando will have to continue to adapt without Eduard Atuesta. Ojeda will play the central role of attacker midfielder, and Ivan Angulo will continue on the left side of the midfield, with the hope of reproducing the brilliant magic of Atusta.

Although on the road, Orlando City can easily play against Miami. Whatever the shape of the Herons, they will always be the favorites of a match, and any chance of bringing their superstars to fall is special for Orlando and the 28 other MLS clubs.

Orlando City predicted the alignment against Inter Miami (4-2-3-1): Gallese; Brekallo, Janson, Schlegel, Freeman; Gerbet, araujo; Angulo, Ojeda, Pasalic; Muriel

None of these teams has had problems in recent weeks, but Inter Miami has certainly had its difficulties in defense. Despite Suárez’s welcome in the alignment, Miami could be tired after a cross-country flight and may not play at their higher level against a team from Orlando which benefits from a constant fate of results.

Prediction: Inter Miami 2–3 Orlando City

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