Inter Miami CF lost its Saturday night road match against Chicago Fire FC 3-1 at SeatGeek Stadium.
Lineup Notes
Inter Miami made three changes to the starting XI from its last match over a week ago. Nick Marsman manned the net; DeAndre Yedlin, Chris McVey, Ryan Sailor, and Kieran Gibbs lined up in defense; Jean Mota, captain Gregore and Alejandro Pozuelo formed the midfield three; Indiana Vassilev and Robert Taylor started on the wings either side of striker and leading scorer Gonzalo Higuaín.
Gibbs, Pozuelo, who served a one-game red card suspension in his last match, and Vassilev returned to the starting XI for tonight’s fixture.
Match Action
Chicago opened the match on the front foot, controlling the majority of possession through the first half, but Inter Miami defended stoutly to deny them clear opportunities. Notably, Higuaín chipped in on the defensive end with a pivotal block to deflect a close-range shot and redirect it off the bar and out following a corner in the 13th minute. Then, in the 30th minute, McVey made an important block of his own to deny a curling strike from Xherdan Shaqiri.
Inter Miami’s best attacking chance of the half came in the 36th minute from a quick transition, where Higuaín craftily evaded a defender and played Pozuelo in down the right wing. The Spaniard then hit a low cross that just narrowly missed the sliding effort of Vassilev in front of goal.
Four minutes later, however, Chicago struck first; a heavily deflected cross came into the box from the right wing and found the head of Jhon Durán in front of goal, where the forward then finished to take the 1-0 lead heading into halftime.
Chicago doubled its lead in the 64th minute when Mauricio Pineda hit a cross that was deflected back to Shaqiri, whose shot found the back of the net.
Inter Miami was the next to strike, halving the deficit in the 77th minute after Pozuelo won the ball high and drew a penalty. Higuaín then stepped up and calmly slotted his finish into the back of the net, sending Slonina the wrong way to make it 2-1. The goal marked the Argentine’s team-leading tenth of the season.
The goal wasn’t enough to secure a route back into the match for Inter Miami, as Chicago would score again in the 87th minute; Durán made a long run on the counter and finished it himself to notch his second goal of the night and make it 3-1.
Post-Match Reaction
"We’ve got to remain balanced, we’ve got to think out the next five games, we know there’s loads of points to play for, we know it’s the team that recovers emotionally and physically and mentally from these setbacks that are going to be successful...It’s about the team that keeps their nerve," said head coach Phil Neville.
Next Match
Inter Miami now faces a quick trip home to host the Columbus Crew at DRV PNK Stadium on Tuesday, Sept. 13 on Kick Childhood Cancer Night presented by Baptist, in a rematch between the sides following their Aug. 31 matchup.
Individual match tickets for each remaining regular season home match on the Inter Miami CF schedule are available by visiting https://www.intermiamicf.com/tickets/single. Fans can also call 305-428-0611 to learn more.
On Saturday afternoon, the 2022 Inter Miami Special Olympics Unified Team made its long-awaited season debut at SeatGeek Stadium in Chicago. The team, composed of athletes with intellectual and developmental disabilities and unified partners, wrapped up a successful trip with a thrilling 4-6 win on the road against the Chicago Fire FC Special Olympics Unified Team before the clash between the First Teams.
Stats
Possession:
CHI - 53%
MIA - 47%
Shots:
CHI - 12
MIA - 7
Saves:
CHI - 2
MIA - 1
Corners:
CHI - 7
MIA - 2
Fouls:
CHI - 7
MIA - 10
