Lionel Messi's inconsistent Inter Miami side will aim to beat visitors Columbus Crew on Sunday at Chase Stadium in their 16th Eastern Conference clash of the 2025 MLS season.
The hosts are sixth with 26 points and managed to defeat CF Montreal 4-2 on Thursday, while Columbus were held to a 2-2 stalemate by Nashville SC on the same date and are fourth with 28 points.
Match preview
© Iconsport
Inter Miami's win against CF Montreal was their first in five matches, and it was just their second success in nine, with the team losing five in that time.
To boss Javier Mascherano's credit, his side managed to create five big chances, though he will be concerned that they also faced three big chances themselves.
The Herons boast a game in hand on all of the top nine, who occupy the Eastern Conference's nine championship playoff spots, and a victory in that match would be significant given they are separated from first-placed Philadelphia Union by seven points.
Inter Miami have been vulnerable at the back, with the club conceding 15 in their last five, but they did score 11 goals in those outings.
The hosts' record at home has been mixed considering they have lost three of their past five at Chase Stadium, emerging triumphant in the other two.
© Imago
Meanwhile, Columbus were fortunate to only concede twice against Nashville SC given they faced seven big chances while only creating one.
Head coach Wilfried Nancy's team have not kept a clean sheet in 11 matches, though his side rank as the Eastern Conference's joint fourth-best defensive side having conceded on 19 occasions.
The visitors were beaten 1-0 in the reverse fixture against Inter Miami on April 19, and they have in fact lost five of their past seven against their hosts.
Columbus are winless in five games and were held to stalemates in four of those matches, but they did achieve victory in five of their prior six.
The Crew have lost one and drawn two of their three most recent outings on the road, though they emerged as winners in three of their previous four.
Team News
© Imago
Inter Miami will be without midfielder Baltasar Rodriguez until the middle of June, while David Ruiz and Yannick Bright are also injured.
Perhaps veteran Sergio Busquets will be joined by Federico Redondo in the middle of the pitch behind forwards Messi and Luis Suarez.
With goalkeeper Drake Callender and centre-back Gonzalo Lujan ruled out, fans could see central defenders Noah Allen and Maximiliano Falcon play ahead of shot-stopper Oscar Ustari.
As for Columbus, wing-back Mohamed Farsi is dealing with a back issue, while goalkeeper Patrick Schulte and centre-backs Sean Zawadzki and Rudy Camacho are also on the sidelines.
Steven Moreira, Yevhen Cheberko and Malte Amundsen could be tasked with protecting goalkeeper Nicholas Hagen.
The visitors may field a double pivot of Darlington Nagbe and Dylan Chambost, and they could be stationed behind an attack consisting of Diego Rossi, Daniel Gazdag and Ibrahim Aliyu.
Inter Miami possible starting lineup:
Ustari; Fray, Falcon, Allen, Alba; Allende, Redondo, Busquets, Segovia; Messi, Suarez
Columbus Crew possible starting lineup:
Hagen; Moreira, Cheberko, Amundsen; Herrera, Chambost, Nagbe, Arfsten; Rossi, Gazdag; Aliyu
We say: Inter Miami 1-1 Columbus Crew
Despite struggling to win recently, Columbus may not concede many goals considering their defensive record is strong.
However, it is hard to see them keeping a clean sheet given Inter Miami have been excellent in the final third, and it would not be surprising if they settled for a draw on Sunday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Lewis Nolan
