Here’s what you need to know about Inter Miami’s home game vs. Chicago on Wednesday
The second half of the season begins on Wednesday for Inter Miami, and coach Phil Neville remains optimistic that his team can finish strong and climb into playoff contention.
Inter Miami has a 4-9-4 record and is in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, 10 points shy of the seventh-place postseason cutoff line. With 17 games remaining — including four over the next 11 days — Miami has a chance to overcome its early season woes.
The next two games are at home against teams ranked in the lower third of the conference. Wednesday’s opponent is the 10th-place Chicago Fire, which is coming off a 1-0 win over Columbus. On Saturday, Miami faces last-place Toronto FC.
Six much-needed points are up for grabs.
“I think everybody knows the importance of the next two home games,” Neville said Tuesday.
The Fire beat Miami 1-0 in Chicago when they last played in late-May, but Neville’s team has found its identity of late. Miami’s past five games were against the top-five teams in the Eastern Conference and only one of those ended in a loss — 2-0 to New York City FC on the road last weekend.
Miami dominated the first 20 minutes against New York but reverted to bad habits and lost its cohesion after falling behind.
“After conceding a goal you saw it floating away from us,” said goalkeeper Nick Marsman. “I think we’re still very vulnerable as a team. We have to stick together because in the second half we were running everywhere. We didn’t keep our shape … got sloppy, tried to force things. It got worse and worse.”
A topic of conversation in the locker room the past few days has been sticking to the game plan and trusting each other rather than trying to win games as individuals.
“We have a lot of guys who want to win, want to show, and that’s a little bit the problem,” Marsman said. “We have to be patient even if we’re 2-0 behind. We can’t fix it in five minutes. People want it so bad we don’t do it as a team anymore. Everyone wants to give 200 percent, and even though it’s with the right mindset, it’s not always the right way.”
Neville expects a hard-fought end-to-end game on Wednesday (7:30 p.m., My33).
“This could be the most difficult of our past five games because of what the three points mean to both teams and the form they’re in,” he said. “You’ve got two teams approaching it in a similar manner, both desperately need those three points. I expect a great battle.”
Forward Robbie Robinson missed the past two games after banging his head in the Orlando City game. He returned to training this week and although he is not expected to start, he could see playing time, Neville said.
Robinson’s return would boost the team’s anemic offense, which has scored just 15 goals in 17 games — lowest in the conference and second lowest in the league. Robinson has the size, speed and passing skills to cause problems for opposing defenders. And when opponents are focused on Robinson, it leaves more space for Gonzalo Higuain and Lewis Morgan to work their way to the goal.
“His performance level has been outstanding in every game he’s played,” Neville said. “We miss him because he offers real balance between him and Lewis Morgan on either side. He gives teams that problem of having two really good threats on either wing. He provides a physical and technical threat we don’t have when he’s not playing. He’s a goal threat and we need to keep adding goals.”
Robinson, the No. 1 pick in the 2020 MLS Draft, has shown flashes of brilliance, but a rash of injuries have kept him from being a regular contributor. Neville said he met with the young forward this week to discuss how to “play through knocks and bruises” and become more durable.
“Even though he’s 22, he’s really young in terms of how to be a professional footballer at the top level,” Neville said. “The confidence that boy is gaining is night and day to the boy I met in preseason. He was shy, lacked confidence in how he engaged with his teammates and with me as a manager. Now there’s a real confidence about him.
“We just need to see that consistently on the pitch, churning out performances and appearances. Sometimes you’ve got to play through a little bit of pain and strain and tiredness and fatigue. That’s something he’s learning and developing.”
Center backs Ryan Shawcross and Ventura Alvarado are injured and will miss the game.
This story was originally published August 17, 2021 at 6:41 PM.