Player Ratings From Inter Miami's Post CCC Match vs. Sporting KC
+ European interest for Diego Gomez?
photo credit: Inter Miami CF
After a tough mid-week match against Monterrey, Inter Miami put its sorrows behind them as they remain near the top of the Eastern Conference with a 3-2 win against Sporting KC.
Though the men in pink started extremely slow, eventually - like Stella, they got their groove back.
With goal contributions from Messi, Gomez, and Suarez, the Herons secured a tough away victory in front of a crowd of over 72,000+.
With the win, Miami now sits tied at the top of the East alongside the New York Red Bulls.
Here are Player Ratings from Miami’s win vs. SKC.
Goalkeeping, Defense:
🧤 Drake Callendar - 6.7: Okay game from Callendar. The second SKC goal probably should’ve been a save, but he was solid down the line for Miami as the game got tense.
💨 Jordi Alba - 8: Arguably, Miami’s most important player not named Messi. His ability to control the flow of the match for the Herons is unmatched. Hopefully, his injury isn’t serious.
🐻 Nicolás Freire - 8.5: His best game for Miami so far. Didn’t let anything past him and I appreciate his no-nonsense clearances.
🦌 Tomas Avilés - 7: Yellow card aside, he did an okay job at nullifying SKC striker Willy Agada.
🎻 Marcelo Weigandt - 6: Ehhh. Could’ve been better tonight.
Midfield:
💈 David Ruiz - 7.3: I’ll always appreciate his hustle and technical ability in tight spaces.
🧮 Sergio Busquets - 7.5: Was the glue for Miami’s backline late in the match. His positional sense and mastery of the dark arts (drawing fouls) help Miami when they get into precarious positions.
🥨 Julian Gressel - 6.4: An uncharacteristically sloppy game from the German-American. Will probably look sharper with a week of rest.
Attack:
🐐 Lionel Messi - 9.5: Scored a banger. Will probably win MLS Goal of the Week, lol.
🔫 Luis Suárez - 7.9: So, his knees, eh?
✌️ Diego Gómez - 10: First 10 for Diego on here! A complete game from the central midfielder. Also ended the match with nine defensive recoveries.
Substitutes:
💪 Benjamin Cremaschi - 6.7: Welcome back, Benja! Nice to see him get some first-team minutes! Had a couple of sloppy touches, but combined nicely with Messi.
🍝 Franco Negri - 6.5: With the severity of Alba’s injury yet to be determined, we will see Negri get more starting minutes soon.
☀️ Yannick Bright - N/A: Did well to disrupt any late SKC attack.
Coaching:
🔢 Tata Martino - 7: Thought he got the subs spot on, also really enjoyed the tactical tweaks he set up in the second half.
Post-Game Quotes from Tata Martino:
On Diego Gomez:
“I think that Diego’s contributions were important for the team. For us, today he played in a forward position and he understood the game well there.”
Mentions European interest is buzzing around him after recent performances.
On the match:
“The truth is that, it was important for us to win tonight’s game to help us with team morale. We recovered from a difficult week and had a solid game.”
On Alba’s injury:
“I haven’t spoken with the medical staff. I don’t want to give any conclusions because I haven’t spoken with the medical team.”
On the win:
“We had to get out of that dynamic of ties and losses. We’ve been able to recover our mood and sensations. We’re satisfied.”
Agree? Disagree? Leave a comment below! Let’s discuss it!
Hope Jordi is okay. But how good to see Benja again and Gomez is a little legend.
Fantastic game and one we really needed. Messi was just vintage Messi, Suarez was key and Gomez was outstanding. It wasn’t perfect but so important for morale and to silence the haters. Also really nice to see Messi and Mahomes, my two favorites meet at last.