After Mascherano exit, Messi's Inter Miami tested at Colorado Rapids | OneFootball

The Herons are looking to bounce back after an uneven start and a coaching change that shook up the squad.

Inter Miami will face a key match this Saturday when they visit Colorado Rapids in the eighth round of the MLS season. It will be the debut of Guillermo Hoyos as head coach, following the surprising departure of Javier Mascherano.

The new manager took over this week and will face his first test in Denver, in a context where the team needs to regain confidence and results. “It’s a winning team, one that always competes alongside the best player in history,” Hoyos said, referring to Lionel Messi, the team’s star.

Inter Miami is not going through its best moment. The elimination from the Concacaf Champions Cup against Nashville SC was a hard blow, and the team also has not yet won in its new stadium, Nu Stadium, where it has already played two matches.

In MLS, the Herons are third in the Eastern Conference with 12 points, four behind leaders Nashville, so they need to keep picking up points to avoid losing ground in the race.

The opponent will not be easy either. Colorado Rapids, who have Brazilian Rafael Navarro as one of their standout players, are sixth in the West with the same number of points as Inter Miami. Both Navarro and Messi come into the match as their teams’ top scorers, with five goals each.

The matchday will also feature other storylines. Nashville will look to hold on to first place in the East against Atlanta United, coached by Gerardo Martino, while in the West the race is red-hot among Vancouver Whitecaps, San Jose Earthquakes, and Los Angeles FC.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.