Inter Miami drops to 11th in East as scoring woes continue in 2-0 road loss to NYCFC
Inter Miami went toe-to-toe with defending MLS champion New York City FC on the narrow, cramped Yankee Stadium field, but couldn’t score and headed home with a 2-0 loss.
It was the eighth time Miami was shut out this season. Scoring struggles have plagued the team the past two seasons. Inter Miami has 22 goals in 21 games this season, third lowest in Major League Soccer.
Argentine midfielder Maxi Moralez, the smallest man on the field at 5-foot-3, and Brazilian forward Heber scored the goals for the home team, one in each half. Valentin “Taty” Castellanos, the league’s leading goal scorer, had an assist in what was expected to be his final game for NYCFC as he is finalizing a move to Spanish club Girona.
New York, which sits in second place in the East, is unbeaten the past six games and ran its home unbeaten streak to 10 games.
Inter Miami, which was without striker Leonardo Campana and winger Ariel Lassiter due to injury, dropped to 7-10-4. Starting midfielder Bryce Duke and defender Damion Lowe also missed the game due to suspension for yellow card accumulation.
Miami dropped to 0-5-2 in its past seven road games and 0-5-0 all-time against New York. The team slipped to 11th place in the East, four spots and three points shy of the final playoff spot, which is held by Cincinnati. Miami plays Cincinnati at home Saturday in a crucial conference matchup.
Left back Kieran Gibbs said of the loss: “We had spells where we were on top, and they had spells where they were on top, it was like a slugfest. But at the end of the day, they were more lethal in front of goal…We had chances, but we have to have more conviction when we have momentum.”
Inter Miami dominated possession 53 percent to 47, but New York outshot Miami 17 to nine, with six shots on goal compared to three for Miami.
Miami coach Phil Neville added: “We competed, the chances we created were good chances we need to convert. We had some really good moments, but we have to start sharper.”
Gibbs and Neville both questioned whether New York’s first goal should have counted. Miami playmaker Alejandro Pozuelo lost the ball at the start of that play, and he and his teammates felt he was fouled but it was not called. There was also some question as to whether Moralez was offside on his shot.
Inter Miami traded for 2020 MLS MVP Pozuelo from Toronto FC a few weeks ago and signed French winger Coco Jean to inject the anemic attack with creativity and productivity. Pozuelo has played the past few games, and Jean just received his visa and was cleared to play. He may make his debut against Cincinnati
“The clock is ticking from now until the end of the season and we have to win,” Neville said. “It’s going to go right to the very last couple of games, I feel. We have three big games next week, it’s a (potential) nine-point week for us.”
After the home game against Cincinnati on Saturday, Inter Miami plays back-to-back games on the road at San Jose Aug. 3 and at Montreal Aug. 6. Then there is a home rematch against NYCFC on Aug. 13.
Despite the loss to New York, Gibbs said the locker room remains positive and united.
“We know there’s no time to sit around and mope,” Gibbs said. “We’ve got 13 games left and there’s still a long way to go. We’ve put ourselves in a good enough position to feel confident going into the final part of the season. It’s important to keep composed at this time, but at the same time, we have to put our foot on the gas at the right time to raise the level so we can give ourselves the best chance of making the playoffs.”
This story was originally published July 23, 2022 at 11:03 PM.