Inter Miami manager Tata Martino has revealed what he finds ‘impossible’ to do when Lionel Messi isn’t playing.
The Argentine superstar was absent from last night’s MLS clash against Orlando City SC with Messi picking up a knee injury for Inter Miami on Saturday away to CF Montreal.
With the forward missing training on Tuesday, Messi was rested for yesterday’s Florida derby with Martino expecting the 36-year-old to be fit enough to feature this Saturday against DC United.
Yet the Inter Miami manager brought up a worrying point.
Inter Miami miss Messi’s genius when absent from games
Speaking to the Miami Herald, Martino revealed that the Herons really miss the passes Messi makes and the spaces the former PSG and FC Barcelona superstar takes up in the final third.
Indeed, Inter Miami’s win record with and without Messi makes for stark reading for supporters, and last night again showed that the Florida franchise are still too reliant on the Argentine working his magic to get results.
Martino said when asked how Inter Miami needs to deal without Mess being available: “Not having Leo, it is impossible to achieve the capacity he has to play the final 25 meters of the field.
“Inter Miami felt that [tonight] and Barcelona felt that ten years ago. All of the good things they did in the buildup needed him to find solutions down the field in tight spaces. We were missing that [against Orlando].
Herons could be in trouble if they can’t solve new Messi problem
As mentioned, Inter Miami’s record with and without Messi is night and day, with the Herons an infinetly better team with the 36-year-old attacker in the squad than out injured.
And for Inter Miami, this is a potential problem that could lead to some huge problems if they can’t fix this issue, with Messi expected to miss most of the summer due to the Copa America.
If Inter Miami can’t find a quick-fix, there’s a real chance that their form will drop off heading into the second-half of the season, and the Herons will not want to lose ground in their bid for the MLS Supporters’ Shield.
