Javier Mascherano’s bold lineup decisions fuel Inter Miami playoff surge
Anyone who watched Javier Mascherano as a player for FC Barcelona, Liverpool and the Argentine national team knows that his reputation was built on his toughness, his tackles, and his ability to read the game and make intelligent decisions.
Those attributes earned him the nickname, “El Jefecito” (the little boss).
Heading into last weekend’s Eastern Conference Semifinals, the 41-year-old first-year Inter Miami coach had to tackle one of the toughest decisions of his career, leaving outsiders to wonder:
Would Mascherano have the guts and the freedom to bench a legendary forward such as Luis Suarez, a player who has scored more than 600 goals over his illustrious career, a player who happened to be his former Barcelona teammate and a close friend of Lionel Messi’s?
The answer is, yes.
Mascherano made that extremely difficult decision, the team played arguably its best game of the season and beat FC Cincinnati 4-0 on the road to advance to the Eastern Conference Final against New York City FC on Saturday at 6 p.m. at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale. Messi and his teammates are two home wins away from lifting the first MLS Cup in club history.
“El Jefecito” chose to start 19-year-old Mateo Silvetti in place of 38-year-old Suarez after seeing the different dynamic the teenager brought to the attack the week before, when Suarez was suspended for the decisive first-round playoff game against Nashville SC, which Inter Miami won 4-0.
Suarez can still be great with the ball at his feet, combine with Messi, and his experience is invaluable; but Mascherano and his staff concluded that against Cincinnati, Inter Miami would need to play into spaces, get behind the defense and having the speedier Silvetti and Tadeo Allende flanking Messi gave them the best chance to win.
The decision paid off.
Mascherano stressed after the game that Suarez made the decision easier by handling it in a highly professional manner. He did not sulk. On the contrary, he trained hard, supported his teammates, and displayed leadership qualities that kept the locker room united.
All season long, Mascherano has deflected compliments, stressing time and again that it is players, not coaches, who merit praise. He says his job as coach is merely to guide the players, make suggestions, and make as few mistakes as possible.
But the compliments of Mascherano are coming this week after back-to-back outstanding victories in which Miami’s attack and defense were nearly flawless.
“It’s very difficult for people to disassociate Javier Mascherano as a player to then, all of a sudden, Javier Mascherano as a manager because we don’t have a ton of proof to go off, but you don’t lose who you are,” said Apple TV lead analyst Taylor Twellman, who played against Mascherano while with the U.S. national team.
“I played against him, if I’m not mistaken, in Copa America and a few friendlies, he’s always been bold and brash. So, he was always going to have the guts to [sit Suarez].”
Leaving Suarez out of the starting lineup was not Mascherano’s only bold roster move in recent months. He also benched veteran starting goalkeeper Oscar Ustari after an embarrassing 5-3 home loss to the Chicago Fire in late September, turning the net minding over to 23-year-old Rocco Rios Novo, who stepped up during the playoffs.
Mascherano made a big point to say that Ustari remains an important leader and that his contributions are vital, as he said about Suarez. But in the end, Mascherano made difficult changes that proved wise.
“This is his first high-profile job as a coach, and I think he’s done an amazing job,” Inter Miami managing owner Jorge Mas said outside the locker room in Cincinnati on Sunday. “This is not an easy club to manage, first because of the expectations placed on him and the players from us, the owners. But you look at what we’ve done this year... how he’s managed the locker room, what he’s done with the development of our younger players, it’s been fantastic. And, how we played [Sunday]. It was a very composed, orderly game, in contrast to how we would have played in March or April.”
Asked if he thinks Mascherano has been underappreciated as a coach, Mas said: “He’s appreciated by me.”
Twellman and Fox analyst Alexi Lalas agreed that Mascherano has done a commendable job in his first year as a professional head coach. His only experience before was with Argentina’s youth national teams.
“He really got my attention with the ability to make little tweaks after they lost to Seattle [in the Leagues Cup final] and after they gave up five goals to Chicago, and I was not surprised he sat Suarez because I’ve never seen Miami with Messi on the field look as good as they did against Nashville [in the 4-0 win],” Twellman said.
Mascherano recognized that a more vertical attack with Silvetti and Allende alongside Messi was the way to go, and he made the switch.
“I think Mascherano has done a great job, especially for an inexperienced and young coach in a league like MLS,” Lalas said. “Yes, he has been given wonderful talent to work with, but managing that talent takes skill and nuance, especially in a dynamic where you are coaching former teammates.”
Lalas added that Mascherano’s leadership has been key in the team’s evolution.
“I’ve often talked about the need for superclubs in MLS, teams that as many people tune in to watch fail as to succeed,” Lalas said. “Every sports league needs villains and teams that others are jealous of.
“The hate-watching of Inter Miami is real. If they lose, there is plenty of schadenfreude around the league. While it’s difficult in MLS, I think Mascherano has helped create a superclub with Inter Miami. I love it. Here’s to more of it!”