BALTIMORE — In front of a record crowd of 72,056 at M&T Bank Stadium, Inter Miami defeated D.C. United 2-1 on Saturday night with goals from Lionel Messi and Rodrigo De Paul. It wasn’t a vintage performance by any means for the Herons, but they were still able to leave with a victory since D.C. United, while improved, are still a work in progress under new manager Rene Weiler.
When one team has Messi and the other doesn’t, it’s important to ensure that you don’t leave any space because the Herons will make you pay, and that’s just what happened in this one:
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“When they have space, it’s pretty complicated [to defend Miami],” Weiler said following the match. “They don’t miss the final pass.”
It’s an issue that has plagued teams around the league constantly, and there’s a reason why Inter Miami are the defending champions after lifting the first MLS Cup in their history last season. It’s not all rosy for the Herons as D.C. United had far too many chances but weren’t able to make them count in the match, while Miami were ruthless when they got the ball, despite De Paul’s miss at the end of the match when he had a chance at netting an insurance goal for the team. De Paul’s performance is something curious from the match. An Argentine had the most shots in the first half for Inter Miami, but it wasn’t the one that you’d expect, with De Paul taking three shots and scoring a goal. Someone who is better known as Messi’s bodyguard, there was a role change with him operating as Messi’s assistant as he’s gotten further up the pitch.
With Miami looking to find their identity in midfield following the retirement of Sergio Busquets, Yannick Bright took up the role of defensive shield while De Paul and Telasco Segovia roamed in front of him, and it worked to great effect. They kept the pressure on D.C. United and were able to force turnovers that led to goals. De Paul still has plenty left in his legs to be a dynamic midfielder in MLS, and so far, he’s been able to get forward to his heart’s content with four shots and a goal facing D.C. United.
The Herons have plenty of talent, so he doesn’t need to be someone who scores 10 goals a season, but getting goals from other places helps with German Berterame’s adjustment to the club. The Mexican striker is still in search of his first goal with Miami after joining from Monterrey, and with Concacaf Champions Cup play around the corner with the Herons facing Nashville SC in the round of 16, matches will only get harder from here.
New goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair is gaining comfort with the defense in front of him, but if Miami are going to continue to allow chances to their opposition, goals from as many players as possible will be needed. St. Clair is going to face chances and even if he’s at his best, stopping every shot on target is an impossible task. For the keeper who played his college soccer at the University of Maryland, he called the game a “full circle moment” while also making two saves in the match.
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The performance against D.C. United won’t take down a much-improved Nashville side, but the pieces are there to see how Javier Mascherano’s men can get the job done chasing a Champions Cup title. De Paul will be critical to everything that they do, so getting this goal is critical. Pushing for more out of Berterame will also be needed, and while a goal may be elusive, his defense was important in forcing a turnover for Miami’s first goal. At the moment, the Herons have a ways to go to reach the peaks of last year’s team, but in moments they flashed that the best is ahead of them and they’ll need it on Wednesday facing Nashville.
