Higuain steps up on, off field as Inter Miami prepares for road game vs. CF Montreal
Phil Neville thought he was used to rain after spending most of his life in England; but the first-year Inter Miami coach was not ready for the stormy weather that disrupted training as his team prepared for Saturday’s road game against CF Montreal.
“This Florida weather is really getting on my nerves the past few weeks,” Neville joked Thursday, after the morning training session was interrupted by lightning. “Every day this week it’s rained. If I were living in Manchester, you’d say this is typical English weather. But this week it’s not just rain, is it? It’s like monsoon every single day.”
Despite the soggy conditions, the coach feels his team is in good shape physically and mentally heading into the game, which will be played at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. (7:30 p.m., My33, UniMas) due to COVID border restrictions. Miami, with just two victories through 10 games, is desperate for a win following four consecutive losses.
Only two players are expected to miss the trip – Robbie Robinson, who is recovering from a hamstring injury, and Joevin Jones, who injured his knee late in last Friday’s 2-1 home loss to Orlando City.
“We have – apart from Joevin (Jones) and Robbie (Robinson) – a fully fit squad for the first time in a long time,” Neville said. “Robbie’s coming on great, joined with the team for the first time (Thursday), so we’re really, really pleased. He should be OK after the Montreal game.”
Despite feeling deflated after the Orlando loss, Neville said his players remain energized because they played well and there are 24 games left and 72 points to play for. Miami is in 12th place in the East with eight points. The top seven make the playoffs.
A big key will be the play of Gonzalo Higuain, the team’s highest-paid player and leading scorer with five goals in eight games. The Argentine forward was left home from the D.C. game two weeks ago and came off the bench in the 60th minute against Orlando as he improves his fitness. He scored Miami’s lone goal shortly after entering the game.
Higuain may not start Saturday, but Neville suggested he could play more than 30 minutes. The goal is for him to be fully fit by mid-July, when Miami plays New York Red Bulls, New England Revolution and Philadelphia Union over an eight-day span.
“We’ve got Gonzalo on a special program, and we’re going to stick to the program,” Neville said. “We realized we would need minutes from him against Orlando, he came in and gave us that little bit of quality with the goal, but it’s a long-term program. He had his best week in terms of his level of leadership, inspiring others.”
Higuain has been running harder in practice and firing up teammates.
“He’s been working really hard, especially to get his fitness up,” said midfielder Victor Ulloa. “We all know if we can get the best of Gonzalo, with his experience and quality, this team has a high chance of being successful. He’s taken on more of a leadership role the past two weeks and it’s good to see. Last game, he said to us, `Keep us in the game, keep us in the game and I’ll come in and make a difference’. And as soon as came in he created something out of nothing. We need that going forward.”
Teammate Jay Chapman agreed: “If you know Gonzalo, he’s happiest when he’s scoring. There’s a different aura about him when he’s scoring. That goal has helped him this week in training. He’s been lively, very active within the group. He’s been positive. He’s starting to look fitter, too. He’s running more in training. He looks sharp. He’s taking a step up in how he’s applying himself, and we need that.”
This story was originally published July 1, 2021 at 5:27 PM.