Good news for Inter Miami: Campana to return from injury for final stretch of season
Inter Miami fans who showed up Tuesday night for the team’s open training session at DRV PNK Stadium were treated to a welcome sight: forward Leo Campana, who has missed five weeks with a thigh injury, practiced with the squad.
Although he was held out of the scrimmage, the Ecuadorean striker is getting closer to game form. Coach Phil Neville said he is “probably 10 days away.” He may miss the next two games and make his return on the road at D.C. United on Sept. 18.
“That was his first little bit with the team, he’s been out five and a half weeks, but his body will tell you it won’t take him long to come back in,” Neville said. “He’s physically fit, a specimen of an athlete and the sooner we get him back the better.”
Campana had replaced Gonzalo Higuain in the starting lineup and emerged as the team’s leading scorer with eight goals in 22 games before his injury. Higuain has more than stepped up in Campana’s absence, is in his best shape since joining the club in 2020 and leads the team with nine goals and three assists.
The team will need both in the final stretch of the season.
Miami, which had moved up as high as fifth place on the Eastern Conference table, lost back-to-back road games and dropped to ninth – two below the playoff line – with six games to go. Three of the remaining games are at home and three are on the road.
“We had a weekend without any games, a weekend watching all our rivals play, so we’re well aware of what’s needed,” Neville said. “We saw a spark in all the eyes tonight, they all looked refreshed. We’re coming into the time where you love it as a football player and manager.”
The coach said the few days up gave everyone a chance to recover after back-to-back road games and prepare for a third consecutive game away Saturday against the Chicago Fire (8 p.m.) followed by a home game Tuesday against the Columbus Crew.
Training in front of a live audience on Tuesday helped give the players some energy. The team will also be inspired this weekend by the return of playmaker Alejandro Pozuelo, who was ejected with a red card in the 30th minute against the New York Red Bulls and then served the suspension against Columbus.
“Getting Pozuelo back and Leo with three games in a week (is very important),” Neville said. “We know the quality of Pozuelo, the effect he has on other people. He makes Gonzalo better, Leo better, Bryce Duke, Gregore. He gives the team that assurance that we missed when he wasn’t playing. It’s good to have him back.”
Goalkeeper Nick Marsman agreed: “He showed he has a massive value for us. He has a big influence. He reads the game very good, so he is the point person to keep possession, to find the right spaces. Also, he attracts opponents toward him and that opens up space for other players to impress.”
Note: As part of a partnership between Inter Miami, the Inter Miami CF Foundation and Baptist Health Cancer Care during Kick Childhood Cancer month, players Noah Allen, Aimé Mabika and Ryan Sailor on Tuesday delivered toys, pajamas, and team gear to the children receiving treatment at Baptist Health Miami Cancer Institute.