Inter Miami Won’t Win Against New York Red Bulls in Lionel Messi’s MLS Debut: Here’s Why

Ever since Lionel Messi made his debut for Inter Miami, the Herons haven’t lost a single match. Moreover, the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner has also scored a whopping 10 goals in this run of 8 matches where he won the Leagues Cup as well. While things have gone like a breeze so far for Messi & Co, Inter Miami’s first true challenge arrives tomorrow when they make their MLS debut against NY Red Bulls.

While nothing is certain in life, one can also not ignore how often history repeats itself. To give context, Inter Miami has a horrific record against the NY Red Bulls. And to make matters worse, speculations are running high that La Pulga might also miss this fixture. Thanks to both these reasons; it looks highly likely that the Herons will open their MLS season on a disappointing note.

Inter Miami has a horrific head-to-head record against NY Red Bulls

As triumphant and successful Inter Miami’s season has been so far; their real challenge has always been the MLS. The daunting challenge stems from the fact that Miami currently resides at the bottom of the MLS Eastern Conference. The team is lagging behind by a substantial 14 points from the final playoff spot.

When the odds are against you from the beginning itself, it’s important for Miami to have a great start to the league. Unfortunately, the Herons make their MLS debut against New York Red Bulls in an away match. In the 7 matches between both the sides, Miami has only won twice. Moreover, the David Beckham-owned side has only once against the NY Red Bulls playing away from their home.

While it’s not certain that Miami won’t win, the odds and history are stacked too much against them. Moreover, they would need an enigma and a generational talent spearheading to break this cycle. Unfortunately for the Herons; Messi is unlikely to feature in their MLS debut.

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Lionel Messi risks missing MLS opener clash against NY Red Bulls

36-year-old Lionel Messi since his Inter Miami debut has played 8 matches. In those 8, La Pulga has played in every minute of the last 6 matches with his latest going on for 120 minutes. It’s only natural that at his age, any player would get tired with this much amount of workload. Moreover, considering how crucial Messi is for Miami’s fortunes, they must be willing to look at the long term and give him adequate rest in between. Ahead of Miami’s crucial MLS opening fixture, Head Coach Tata Martino relayed the same.

“We will assess further after this evening’s training,” Martino said on Messi’s fitness levels. “It is inevitable that we will not have him at some point. I understand the expectations the rest of the world has to watch him, and that is undeniable. But I cannot act based on that, because then I would risk doing things wrong,” said the gaffer on potentially benching La Pulga for workload management.

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Do you see Inter Miami defying the odds and grabbing a surprise victory? Or will history repeat itself yet again? Let us know your predictions in the comments below!