Inter Miami seeks to rebound on the road against the Columbus Crew on Wednesday

Three points are all that separate sixth place from 11th right now in Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference. The standings are so tight right now that one result could catapult a team into the playoff picture as easily as it could sink another.

Inter Miami is aware of that fact, and knows it needs to find a way to rebound on Wednesday without at least one of its top players in order to remain on track for the postseason.

Sixth-placed Inter Miami is set to visit the seventh-placed Columbus Crew at Lower.com Field on Wednesday night in a showdown with major playoff implications. The South Florida side and Crew are both just above the red line with 36 points each, but a loss or even a draw can threaten their positions in the standings.

“It is so tight,” Inter Miami coach Phil Neville said of the table. “I think it is going to be a brilliant end to the season.”

“We have got two games against them in the next month,” Neville added. “I think these two games will probably define where we will finish in the season.”

If that is not challenging enough, Inter Miami will have to exorcise its road demons in order to come out on top in Ohio. The Herons have posted a paltry 2-8-3 record away from home this year, and making matters worse is that productive playmaker Alejandro Pozuelo will not be able to play after being ejected in this past weekend’s 3-1 loss to the hosting New York Red Bulls.

Bryce Duke could be the one called upon to replace Pozuelo in the lineup if Neville wants to keep an attack-minded approach, but the Englishman has another lineup selection to worry about going into this one.

Star striker Gonzalo Higuain, who has recorded seven goals in the team’s past nine games, remains a question mark for the midweek match. Higuain suffered a calf injury that forced him out of the defeat to the Red Bulls, and did not practice on Monday.

“We will probably have to leave it until the last minute whether he travels or not because of the foul just before their first goal,” Neville said.

If Higuain must be replaced by one of Corentin “Coco” Jean, Emerson Rodriguez or Ariel Lassiter at the center forward position, it could impact Neville’s game plan.

Missing arguably both of Inter Miami’s most talented attackers in Higuain and Pozuelo — not to mention the continued absence of striker Leonardo Campana due to injury — could force Neville to deploy a more pragmatic and defensive style against the likes of in-form striker Cucho Hernandez, talented attacking midfielder Lucas Zelarayan and smooth-footed central midfielder Darlington Nagbe.

Neville, however, insists that will not be the case.

“We are going to go there and attack,” Neville said. “I think we went back to our four at the back [system] away from home, [but] we have got the option of going to a three-back as well.

“It has been really good for us away from home. It has given us security and flexibility in the attack, and we will make that decision late on because of Gonzalo’s status.”

Regardless of who steps onto the field, Inter Miami is full of belief heading into Wednesday. The weekend loss to the Red Bulls may have left Neville and his men a bit frustrated, but Inter Miami knows it remains in control of its playoff destiny heading into the final seven matches of the regular season.

“We are very confident. I do not think too many teams even want to face us now,” said winger Ariel Lassiter, who has scored twice in the past three games. “We have our characteristics, we know what we want to do, we know how to play, we know each other now, and we are feeling very confident out on the field.

“Taking that into the last stretch is very important.”