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New York Red Bulls
Inter MiamiInter Miami are purring right now, and that is genuinely bad news for a New York Red Bulls side that has looked shaky for weeks. Since returning from the international break, Kily Gonzalez’s men have been virtually unstoppable domestically, and they travel to New Jersey carrying the kind of momentum that makes you sit up and take notice. Meanwhile, the Red Bulls have lost three of their last four league games, failed to score in two of them, and are clinging to eighth place in the Eastern Conference by the thinnest of margins. This one sets up very nicely for Miami, and the head to head record only adds to that feeling.
There is a subplot here that is worth spelling out. Lionel Messi is three games away from equalling the longest direct goal contribution streak of his entire career, a run he put together under Pep Guardiola at Barcelona back in 2011 when he was in arguably the finest form of his footballing life. The fact that he is approaching that kind of territory at this stage of his career tells you everything about his current level. He scored a brace against Atlanta last weekend. The Red Bulls know he is coming. So does everyone else. Good luck stopping him.
This Eastern Conference clash takes place at Sports Illustrated Stadium in New Jersey, with both clubs chasing very different objectives as the MLS regular season enters its final stretch. For the Red Bulls, it is about survival in the playoff picture. For Inter Miami, it is about consolidating second place and keeping their title defence on track with four games remaining.
The Red Bulls are dealing with a significant absence between the sticks, while Miami have a string of players on the treatment table heading into the weekend.
Michael Bradley looks set to go with the shape and personnel that have become familiar over recent weeks. Horvath starts in goal with Nealis, Che, Bazan and Padelford forming the back four. Donkor, Forsberg and Sofo provide the midfield engine, with Harper, Hall and Cowell tasked with creating something going forward. Hall and Mehmeti will carry the creative burden in the final third, and there is genuine quality there even if the team around them has been struggling.
Miami’s possible XI of St. Clair; Lujan, Casemiro, Micael, Reguilon; De Paul, Ayala, Segovia; Messi, Suarez, Berterame is as close to a dream lineup as any MLS club can put out. Berterame has scored in back to back games now, and Messi alongside Suarez is the kind of forward partnership that still genuinely excites you regardless of how many times you see it. Gonzalez picks itself in attack, and defensively they have been solid enough to back that quality up.
The Red Bulls’ form coming into this one makes for uncomfortable reading if you support them. Three defeats in their last four league outings, and they have been held scoreless in two of those games. A 2-0 home loss to Toronto was the most recent blot on the record, and that result has left them sitting eighth in the East, above the playoff line purely on the basis of having more wins than Toronto rather than any points cushion. With four games left, every single result matters enormously, and the margin for error is effectively zero.
The saving grace for New York fans is that their side has been unbeaten against Florida clubs this season, including a 3-2 win over Orlando City at Sports Illustrated Stadium back in August. Whether that form against Florida opposition carries any weight against a Miami side that is operating at a completely different level to Orlando is debatable, but it is at least something to cling to. Their 39 goals scored also ties them with Seattle Sounders for the fewest among clubs currently occupying a playoff spot, which tells you something about where the problems lie.
Miami, on the other hand, are on a completely different trajectory. They have a 100% domestic record since the international break, and last weekend they snapped a four game winless run away from home in the league by beating Atlanta 3-1. They lead the entire MLS in average goals per game at 2.4, and they have scored three or more goals in six away matches this season. If they win their last two regular season road games, they will equal a club record for away victories in a single campaign. The momentum is entirely with the reigning champions.
The head to head record will not bring the Red Bulls much comfort either. Miami are unbeaten in their last four meetings with New York, and the most recent clash between these two sides at this venue ended 5-1 to the visitors. That is a scoreline that tells its own story about the gulf between these clubs at this particular moment in time. A win on Saturday would extend Miami’s unbeaten run against the Red Bulls to five matches, and based on current form there is very little to suggest the hosts can end that sequence.
It is also worth noting that when you look at the recent meetings in this fixture, Miami have not just won, they have won comfortably. This is not a rivalry where the home side tends to make life difficult. The Red Bulls simply have not been able to handle the quality Miami bring to the pitch when they are at full tilt.
The angle here is simple. Miami are the form team, their attack is the most potent in the league, and they are facing a Red Bulls defence that has been leaking confidence along with clean sheets. Messi and Berterame are both in fine nick, Suarez still knows where the goal is, and the hosts have looked brittle for weeks. The away win looks nailed on, and the goals market strongly favours the over given what Miami have been doing to opposition defences all season.
Lionel Messi scored twice last weekend and is chasing that historic goal contribution streak with real intent. He pulls the strings in the final third and gets into goalscoring positions with an instinct that has never left him. He is the standout pick to open the scoring here and at solid enough odds given his current form, he is worth backing.
Over 2.5 goals looks like the play without too much deliberation. Miami average 2.4 goals per game on their own, and the Red Bulls have not exactly been keeping things tight at the back. When a side as attack minded as Inter Miami faces a defence with this kind of form, goals tend to follow. Back the over and do not lose sleep over it.
The 5-1 from last season feels like an outlier, but the principle behind it does not. Miami win comfortably, the Red Bulls scramble to grab one late on. A 3-1 away win feels like the right call given Miami’s firepower and the Red Bulls’ tendency to at least get something forward even when the game has slipped away from them.
Miami like to get bodies forward in numbers and press high, which naturally generates corner situations. New York will be pushing for something if they find themselves chasing the game, and that should bring more set pieces at both ends. Over 9.5 corners is the call here as an attacking Miami side meets a Red Bulls outfit that will need to throw players forward as the game develops.
| Market | Selection |
|---|---|
| Match Result | Inter Miami to Win |
| Over and Under Goals | Over 2.5 Goals |
| First Goalscorer | Lionel Messi |
An in form Messi opening the scoring in a game where Miami are expected to win at a canter and goals look inevitable is as logical a combination as you will find this weekend.
Michael Bradley will want a response from his players after that defeat to Toronto, and the crowd at Sports Illustrated Stadium will be right behind them. But the honest truth is that this Miami side are operating on a completely different level right now. They are the best attacking unit in MLS, Messi is approaching historic personal territory, and the Red Bulls simply do not have the defensive solidity or the goalscoring form to compete with that.
New York Red Bulls 0-3 Inter Miami. The away side win this at a canter, extend their unbeaten run against the Red Bulls, and keep their push for back to back MLS Cup titles very much alive heading into the final weeks of the regular season.