Inter Miami Preview.
Diving into Columbus' upcoming fixture against a highly talented and stubborn Inter Miami side.
Following a strong run of form in league play that has seen Columbus pick up four away wins in a row, the toughest test may still await as the Columbus Crew travel to Miami (Fort Lauderdale), Florida on Wednesday night to face the current Supporters Shield leaders in Inter Miami.
Miami will be coming off of a dogfight of a match against the Philadelphia Union in Chester, Pennsylvania as they clawed their way back from 1-0 down to win 2-1, whilst suffering two red cards that while setting them back in the short term, seemed to only fuel their drive to win even more in the grand scheme of the game. This win was Miami’s first in three games, as they suffered defeat at home to Atlanta United before a chaotic 3-3 draw against Saint Louis CITY SC, also at home. You could describe this perhaps as a bit of a rough patch for Miami, seeing as they have only lost in MLS play three times all year, also losing to CF Montreal and their worst of the bunch, a 4-0 loss at Red Bull Arena to the New York Red Bulls.
Cucho winds up a shot between two Inter Miami defenders. Credit: NBC4
So, while this may be a daunting task for The Crew, the sides recent road form coupled with Miami’s tendency to crumble against high pressure sets this up to be a back-and-forth game, which will be tough to take seeing as this was the same intensity that was played in the NYCFC/Crew game this past Friday.
For Miami, they will be looking to outplay us through the smooth and high tempo passing that we have seen from them so much this year. The midfield of David Ruiz, Sergio Busquets, and Benjamin Cremaschi was clinical in their endeavors of turning quickly and finding short outlets, something that may trouble The Crew as they love to press high, especially having one of the three CB’s pushup to help in midfield which can often leave the backline exposed in counter situations. Julian Gressel will also be one to watch, especially as he looks to get on the wing and cross, or cut inside, and while he cuts inside minimally, he is often dangerous when he does. Fortunately for The Crew, Miami is missing a host of key players either through injury, international duty, or through suspension. Both Nicolas Freire and David Ruiz will miss this fixture through suspension after being sent off against Philadelphia, meaning Miami will have to turn to the bench yet again to fill the midfield role, with Yannick Bright the likely choice. Also missing through injury are Federico Redondo, Facundo Farias (long term), and Diego Gomez. Lionel Messi will likely be out of the squad entirely as he joins up with Argentina for the Copa America.
Overall, aside from the Concacaf Champions Cup final against Pachuca, this will be one of the Crew’s biggest tests of this MLS season. I’ll be particularly curious to see if Yevhen Cheberko starts again over Steven Moreira. And to his benefit, Cheberko has looked massively improved in his minutes this year as compared to last season, although he does have a tendency to push up higher in instances when he should stay back, and Moreira could offer a calmer presence in the backline, especially in the opening minutes. I’ll also be interested to see if Marino Hinestroza gets the start here. Hinestroza could be a skillful line breaker to help unlock the Miami backline, which in all honesty has not been hard to breakdown this year, but I’d like to see him have this opportunity and take it should he start.
Following Columbus’ bout away to Inter Miami, Columbus will finally return home on Saturday as they take on Sporting Kansas City, currently bottom of the Western Conference.