Messi to start against Atlanta United tonight
Chasing team and personal goals with Inter Miami, Messi leaves Argentina camp to don the Pink & Black; he still could play for La Albiceleste against Puerto Rico on Tuesday.
Inter Miami CF will present a tribute to left wing back Jordi Alba after tonight’s match against Atlanta United. Alba recently announced he will retire at the end of this season. CREDIT: Inter Miami CF
Herons still have work to do
Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, two of Inter Miami’s “Big Four,” have announced they’re hanging up their cleats after the season, fueling speculation about who might fill their extremely lucrative designated player spots next year.
Meanwhile, the Herons have at least four more matches to play in 2025. First up: a makeup match tonight at home against Atlanta United. The match was rescheduled from June when Inter Miami unexpectedly advanced to the FIFA World Cup round of 16.
Los Garzas (17-7-8, 59 points) are in third place in Major League Soccer’s Eastern Division, behind Supporters’ Shield winner Philadelphia (66 points) and FC Cincinnati (65). Miami still could leapfrog Cincinnati into second place, guaranteeing home-field advantage through at least two rounds of the MLS Cup playoffs; Atlanta, meanwhile is winding down a disastrous season (27 points, 14th of 15 Eastern Conference teams) and would love nothing more than a win against the Herons before its season ends after “Decision Day” next Saturday.
Because the make-up game falls during an international break, both teams are missing several key players. The Five Stripes will be without Miguel Almirón (Paraguay), Luke Brennan (USA, U20 World Cup), Ronald Hernández (Venezuela), Enea Mihaj (Albania), Alexi Miranchuk (Russia), and Bartosz Slisz (Poland).
Miami players on international duty include Telasco Segovia (Venezuela), Noah Allen (Greece U21), and Mateo Silvetti (Argentina U20 World Cup), Rodrigo De Paul (Argentina) and Lionel Messi (Argentina). Fafa Picault was called up by Haiti, but received permission to stay with the Herons. Maxi Falcon will miss tonight’s match due to yellow-card accumulation.
Messi worked out with La Albiceleste all week, but didn’t participate in Argentina’s 1-0 win against Venezuela last night at Hard Rock Stadium; because Argentina trains in Fort Lauderdale and will play Puerto Rico at Chase Stadium on Tuesday, some pundits speculate that Messi could play for the Herons tonight and his national team three days later.
Messi, with 41 goal contributions (24 goals, 17 assists) seems likely to repeat as MLS Most Valuable Player, but he has a chance to win the league’s Golden Boot, presented to the player who scores the most goals in league play. Messi and LAFC’s Denis Bouanga are tied for the Golden Boot lead, but Bouanga is on international duty with Gabon and has just a single game left to play. Messi has tonight’s match against Atlanta and next week’s Decision Day clash at Nashville.