Inter Miami is undefeated, unscored upon through two games. Up next: NYCFC on the road
Inter Miami is the surprise team of Major League Soccer so far with a pair of 2-0 victories against Montreal and Philadelphia, the top two teams in the Eastern Conference last season.
But coach Phil Neville is keeping his feet firmly on the ground heading into the first road game Saturday against New York City FC.
Neville and his players were humbled the last time they played NYCFC, as they were bounced out of the playoffs in the first round following a 3-0 loss in the final game of Gonzalo Higuain’s career.
“There are probably a few scars and some memories that I hope will inspire them on Saturday to reach the level of performance that is needed to beat a team like NYC,” the coach said.
“There is a big feel-good factor around the facility, it is the confidence we get from beating the two best teams from the conference last season. Now we have to face the third best team from last year away from home.”
Complicating matters is the fact that NYCFC plays its home games at Yankee Stadium, where the field is 70 yards wide by 110 yards long, making it the smallest in MLS. The tight dimensions limit teams from spreading as wide, which requires an adjustment.
The playoff loss was played at CitiField, which is also a baseball field with awkward configurations. But Inter Miami is not using that as an excuse for the losses. The team is determined to improve its road results in all venues.
“Our away form last season wasn’t good enough,” Neville said. “If we had won maybe three or four more games away from home we would have finished in fourth position, so we want to start the away season really well. We need to have that ruthless mentality away from home that we show here.”
New York opened the season with a 2-0 road loss to Nashville followed by a road 1-1 tie with the Chicago Fire. Brazilian Gabriel Pereira scored the lone goal. The team lost center forward Valentin Castellanos to Spanish club Girona last summer, and this offseason lost Maxi Morales to Racing Club in Argentina and longtime goalkeeper Sean Johnson to Toronto.
Inter Miami forward Leo Campana, who was expected to start alongside Josef Martinez this season, missed the first two games with a calf injury and is not expected back for two to three more weeks. Forward Robbie Robinson remains out with a calf strain. Shaynder Borgelin, who scored in his debut against Montreal, is questionable, as is left back Franco Negri.
The four Miami goals so far have come from Borgelin, Serhiy Kryvtsov, Coco Jean and Robert Taylor.
Saturday’s game is at 7:30 p.m. and available with the Apple TV Season Pass.
This story was originally published March 10, 2023 at 3:05 PM.