Put aside the Olympics for a while, we are back to America. Group N heavyweights Tigres UANL take on Inter Miami in the Leagues Cup 2024. One of the most highly anticipated fixtures, this showdown on Saturday at NRG Stadium in Houston would see either side close on their group stages as toppers and battle out for first place in the East 3 group.

Inter Miami enters this fixture with brimming confidence. They won the opening group-stage clash against Puebla 2-0, courtesy of Matias Rojas and Luis Suarez. Similar has been the case for Tigres UANL, who clinched a 2-1 victory over Puebla thanks to crucial strikes from Sebastian Cordova and Diego Reyes.

Both sides are tied with three points each, and though they have progressed to the knockout stages with victories over Puebla, either side would be looking to end the affair with their second consecutive victory.

Tigres UANL vs. Inter Miami: Team News

Injuries

Tigres UANL

The Tigres again won’t have David Ayala to count on. The midfielder missed the previous fixture vs. Puebla as the 24-year-old continues to nurse his knee injury. The rest are expected to be available for manager Veljko Paunović to use. He may introduce the new faces in the starting XI, just like he did by deploying Jesus Angulo, Ozziel Herrera, and Nicolas Ibanez in the opening group stage fixture.

Inter Miami

Lionel Messi remains the biggest absentee for Inter Miami. The Argentinian superstar returned from Copa America duties with a trophy as well as an ankle injury. Hence, it’s unlikely that fans will get to witness Messi in action. Unfortunately, the injury issues don’t end for Miami here, as Serhiy Kryvtsov nurses his minor knock while Nicolas Freire and Facundo Farias are out with ACL issues.

Meanwhile, both Diego Gomez and Benjamin Cremaschi also remain absent from the Miami camp as they are on international duty for their respective nations contesting in the ongoing Paris Olympics 2024.

Predicted line-ups

Tigres UANL (4-4-2): Guzman; Garza, Pizarro, Reyes, Angulo; Cordova, Gorriaran, Brunetta, Quinones; Ibanez, Gignac

Inter Miami (4-3-3): Dos Santos; Weigandt, Allen, Fray, Negri; Ruiz, Bright, Rojas; Gressel, Suarez, Campana

Team form

Tigres UANL: LWDWWW

Inter Miami: WWLWWW

Without a doubt, both sides present a formidable challenge to each other. However, considering all the factors, we may feel this may go south for Tata Martino and Co. Even the presence of Lionel Messi, who missed this match, wouldn’t have brought significant change, as things may go south for the MLS side in this one. We predict Inter Miami will be 1-2 vs Tigres UANL.

How to watch Tigres UANL vs. Inter Miami Leagues Cup on TV and live stream

Tigres UANL vs. Inter Miami will kick off on August 3 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. Fans in the US, UK, and other countries can catch the action live on Apple TV with the MLS season pass. A few of the matches can also be televised on Televisa, Fox Sports (FS1), TSN, and RDN.