Lionel Messi and Inter Miami will face an early season derby test when they host Florida rivals Orlando City in Major League Soccer this Saturday. Messi’s stoppage-time equalizer in Sunday’s 1-1 draw at the Los Angeles Galaxy kept Miami unbeaten after starting the season with a 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake. Despite the results, Miami’s veteran-laden squad struggled for much of the game in Los Angeles. Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez appears to be lacking match fitness, while Spanish midfielder Sergio Busquets, who has been dealing with an ankle injury, has also performed below par.
“We started well and got the results we wanted. On Sunday, we wanted to win, but the tie was enough. “It wasn’t our best game,” Busquets admitted.
“The beginning of a season is always difficult. We still need to adjust, wait for injured players to recover, and hope to perform well at home in the Clasico this Saturday.”
Busquets stated that Suarez, a 37-year-old Uruguayan striker who previously played for Barcelona and Liverpool, needs time to adjust to his new surroundings after joining the club from Gremio, where he scored 17 goals last season.
“This is a new league. “We all require a period of adaptation,” the Spaniard explained. “It’s not just him, but the entire team. We are changing, fixing things, and there are still some things that can be improved.”
Orlando is the most difficult opponent Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino’s team has faced thus far, and not just because they will be fired up for a local derby.
Orlando finished second in the Eastern Conference last season, and despite losing to eventual MLS Cup winners Columbus in the conference semi-finals, they are among the favorites to win the title this year.
Colombian coach Oscar Pareja has added some experience and quality to his team in the offseason, indicating that he is taking a ‘win now’ approach to the season.
Luis Muriel, a 32-year-old Colombian winger, has joined the Lions from Serie A club Atalanta, marking the end of his 14-year European career.
Uruguayan midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro, a Seattle Sounders standout, has joined Orlando, as has Slovenian defender David Brekalo.
Miami defeated Orlando in the League Cup in August, shortly after Messi and Busquets joined the club, as did Spanish fullback Jordi Alba.
Pareja attacked the referees in that game for not giving Messi a second yellow card, describing the game as a “circus” during the height of ‘Messi mania’.
On Saturday, the improved Galaxy will face the San Jose Earthquakes in another in-state derby in northern California.
The Galaxy, bolstered by the offseason additions of Ghanaian winger Joseph Paintsil and Brazilian wideman Gabriel Pec, as well as Spanish midfielder Riqui Puig and Serbian striker Dejan Joveljic, appear to be a far more dangerous opponent than they were in their disappointing 2023 season when they failed to reach the playoffs.
The defending champions Columbus Crew will pay a visit to Minnesota United, who announced on Monday that Eric Ramsay has been appointed as their new coach.
