A day later than expected, Inter Miami’s season is set to kick off with the Herons traveling to face Sporting Kanas City in Concacaf Champions Cup play on Wednesday night. With frigid cold expected, it didn’t take long for the perpetual question that has surrounded this team for the past season and a half to rear its head yet again — will Lionel Messi play?
The Argentine has been Miami’s talisman and then some, racking up 34 goals and 18 assists in only 39 appearances in all competitions, but he has also missed significant time due to various leg injuries. Entering the season on the verge of turning 38 this year, there are plenty of miles on Messi’s legs and he’s not getting any younger. He has a goal of playing in the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, but for that to happen, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni, Inter coach Javier Mascherano and Messi will need to be careful about load management over the course of a long season.
How to watch and odds
- Date: Wednesday, February 18 | Time: 8 p.m. ET
- Location: Children’s Mercy Park — Kansas City, Kan.
- TV: Fox Sports 2 | Live stream: Fubo (try for free)
- Odds: Sporting Kansas City +150; Draw +260; Inter Miami +170
With Major League Soccer lessening the cup commitments for teams around the league, Inter Miami and the Seattle Sounders will be the only teams to compete in three cup competitions with Concacaf Champions Cup, the Leagues Cup and the Club World Cup alongside domestic play. Add that in with international duty in what is a tight table for CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying, and it won’t take long for the matches to build up for the reigning league MVP.
Messi has shown that he doesn’t need to play in every match to make an impact for Miami but with key attackers like Diego Gomez and Leonardo Campana elsewhere as the season is kicking off, that may not be the case as this season’s roster is thinner in key areas. Essentially, if Miami’s defense doesn’t improve, they’ll actually need more from Messi which is an unrealistic expectation.
Mascherano has a tougher job than what meets the eye to bring this team together, and even though preseason performances were good, especially from new signing Fafa Picault finding the back of the net, it’s also just preseason play which has to be taken with a grain of salt. The show officially goes on the road when the Concacaf Champions Cup kicks off, and like most weeks, Miami will be greeted with two games each week as they’ll face New York City FC on Saturday on short rest to kick off the MLS regular season.
Given that Miami already have the regular season points record from last season, it’d make sense to play Messi against SKC and then rest him versus NYCFC even if it’s the home opener for the team. Nine teams in the Eastern Conference make the MLS Cup playoffs, and if Miami’s depth players aren’t good enough to accomplish that, Mascherano needs to know quickly while the transfer window is open so they can still add reinforcements.
In Tadeo Allende and Telasco Segrovia, attackers have been added who have a chance to take the pressure off of Messi, Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba, but the progression of Benjamin Cremaschi and Federico Redondo will be critical in how Miami play without their stars. There’s no question that Messi still has plenty to give to the team, but Miami have to think of a future during which the Argentine won’t be available to bail them out of matches.
With this roster, after him and Suarez, there’s no telling who the third attacker will be, and that’ll be needed when juggling these competition commitments. If Messi is needed to bail the Herons out of MLS games early in the season, it’ll leave them with less of a chance of getting the job done through the summer and beyond. Not playing stars early in the season creates important growth opportunities and Miami should be able to see off most competition while rotating.
Things like this are what makes Mascherano’s job a tough one this season. It’s not only about getting the best out of his first XI, they can win most games on their own. It’s about ensuring that the right changes are made at the right time and that the younger players all grow into their own. It’s where Tata Martino struggled and part of why Miami has a new coach now. If this is only the Messi show, while it’ll be a fun season to watch, that won’t create the best Inter Miami side possible.
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