Inter Miami returns to MLS play in Chicago
Fresh off one of the greatest wins of their short history, the Herons look to extend their MLS unbeaten streak in Chicago.
Lionel Messi, right, of Inter Miami CF celebrates after scoring the team's third goal during the Concacaf Champions Cup 2025 quarterfinal second leg match April 9 against Los Angeles Football Club at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale. Photo: Megan Briggs/Getty Images via AFP.
Will Chicago fans finally see Messi?
“A sellout crowd of 61,000 fans filled Soldier Field to see Lionel Messi and Inter Miami play the hometown Chicago Fire two years ago, but the Argentine icon was injured and did not play.”
• WHO: Inter Miami CF (4-0-2, 14 points) at Chicago Fire (3-2-2, 11 points)
• WHAT: MLS regular season
• WHEN: 4:30 p.m. ET, Sunday, April 13
• WHERE: Soldier Field, Chicago
• TV: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV+
• RADIO: Inter Miami — ESPN 106.3 FM (English), Deportes Radio 760 AM (Spanish)
• RADIO: Chicago — WLS-AM 890 (English), TUDN 1200 AM (Spanish)
Wary of another Messi no-show, only 55,385 fans bought tickets for last year’s Herons-Fire match; the World Cup hero and consensus greatest player ever didn’t even travel to the match.
And this year? The Herons played a grueling must-win Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal match Wednesday against Los Angeles FC. Inter Miami did win, scoring three unanswered goals to take the match 3-1 and the home-and-home tie 3-2.
Many coaches would choose to rest his starters after such a physically and mentally exhausting contest just four days earlier.
But first-year Herons coach Javier Mascherano has shown a willingness to let his players play. He didn’t confirm that 37-year-old Messi or his former Barcelona teammates — Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets and Luis Suarez — would play, but neither did he say they wouldn’t.
“If they are feeling fine, they will play.”
— Javier Mascherano, IMCF coach
“If they are feeling fine, they will play,” Mascherano told the media, as reported by Michelle Kaufman of the Miami Herald. “By feeling fine, I mean 100 percent physically and mentally; if any of them are not, they will rest, but our idea is to put the best out there….yes, sometimes you must manage minutes, but the team dynamics and getting good results are also important. (Alba, Busquets, Messi and Suarez) help us a lot with leadership on game days. We want to manage the load but also use them as much as possible.”
Former U.S. Men’s National Team coach Gregg Berhalter, in his first season leading the Fire, has prepared as if Messi & Co. will be on the pitch.
“Guys like that play,” Berhalter said, adding that shutting down Messi and Suarez isn’t the Fire’s focus.
“They’re too good,” he said. “It’s about limiting the damage and (deciding) ‘How do we hurt them when we have the ball?’ They showed vulnerability against LA, but defensively we can be at our best and still get hurt. If you do one thing wrong, you get punished.”
Chicago is third in scoring with 14 goals in seven matches, led by Hugo Cuypers’ five goals and two assists. Phillip Zinckernagel has three goals and two assists and Jonathan Bamba has chipped in with a goal and four assists.
Messi (3 goals, 2 assists), Telasco Segovia (3 g, 2 a), and Luis Suarez (1 g, 4 a) lead Inter Miami in MLS play.
Starting lineups
CHICAGO FIRE: Chris Brady; Omari Glasgow, Jack Elliott, Carlos Terán, Andrew Gutman; Mauricio Pineda, Sergio Oregel, Brian Gutierrez; Philip Zinckernagel, Hugo Cuypers, Jonathan Bamba.
Bench: Kellyn Acosta, Omar Gonzalez, Tom Barlow, Jeffrey Gal, Maren Haile-Selassie, Justin Pledger Reynolds, Christopher John Cupps, Rominigue Kouamé, Dje D’Avila.
INTER MIAMI CF: Oscar Ustari; Gonzalo Lujan, Toto Aviles, Maxi Falcon, Noah Allen; Benjamin Cremaschi, Sergio Busquets, Federico Redondo; Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Telasco Segovia.
Bench: Fafa Picault, Drake Callender, Ian Fray, Jordi Alba, Yannick Bright, Celo Weigandt, David Martinez, Tadeo Allende, Allen Obando