3 things we learned from NYCFC losing to Inter Miami in the first loss of 2026 | OneFootball

On Sunday, New York City FC played their third match of the four-game homestand, welcoming Inter Miami CF to Yankee Stadium in the teams’ first meeting of the season.  The two last met in the Eastern Conference Finals, in which the Pigeons were dismantled by the Herons.  They wanted to take revenge, or even try to stay unbeaten in the 2026 Major League Soccer season.  However, the match ended in a 3-2 loss.

NYCFC fought hard, even though Miami dominated the possession and outshot the home side 22 to 10.  The Pigeons still scored two goals, and almost tied it at the end with a header from Aiden O’Neill.  Sadly, the goals from Nicolás Fernández Mercau and Agustín Ojeda were not enough.

At the same time, Miami could easily have scored more goals and embarrassed NYCFC at home, as they did in the regular season last year.  But for the most part, the defense held strong, and Matt Freese made five saves.  Two of three goals allowed by the Boys in Blue came from defensive lapses, and the superb Lionel Messi free kick was just impossible for the goalkeeper, and really any MLS goalkeeper, to stop.

Quite a bit happened during the match.  Therefore, here are three things we learned from NYCFC’s first loss of the season.

Nicolás Fernández Mercau is already NYCFC’s MVP

It has been said before, but Fernández Mercau is one of the best signings in a long time.  The Argentine has been incredible since joining the Boys in Blue last summer, and arguably is an early contender for NYCFC’s MVP.  If he continues to play as he has for most of the season, then he will be the MVP at the end of the year.

Fernández Mercau is brilliant with his movement on the pitch and his control of the ball.  But what is shocking is that he is doing well in the false nine position.  Playing as a center-forward is usually his weakest position, and the false nine was thought not to be the best idea.  But within a few weeks, he has soared like an eagle in the sky.  He has five goals, and the one he added this weekend was incredible.

NYCFC was awarded a free kick, and Fernández Mercau took it right outside of the box.  With swiftness and power, he forced the ball over the wall, and it hit the top bar of the goal.  The ball subsequently bounced beyond the line and tied the game at the time.  Truly, if anyone ever wants to know why the Pigeons signed him, then just show them this goal.

The referee missed too many calls

Listen, there is no question that the loss is on NYCFC.  The defense was asleep at the start of the game, which allowed the Herons to score first.  Messi’s free kick goal was already one of the best of the year, like Fernández Mercau’s free kick goal.  Then, the backline did not do a good job with marking every Miami player, which allowed Micael to score via a header to win the game.

At the same time, the argument that the referee was slightly more lenient with fouls with Miami and missed too many calls that would have favored NYCFC is a valid one.  There were multiple times when the whistle was blown when the home team’s players committed light fouls, but nothing was called when the opposite occurred.  Maxi Moralez was brought down a few times where other referees likely would have made the foul calls.

Also, Messi’s goal was due to a free kick that was given after Moralez was called for a handball.  Yet, O’Neill had fouled the Argentine before then, and he decided to take the free kick very quickly.  He shot the ball into Moralez, who was walking toward the goal to get set up for the original free kick.  The fact that the referee allowed that was shocking.  Like, what could the NYCFC legend do at that time?  Notably, Messi could have scored on the original free kick, but he was closer.

Of course, the biggest missed call was when Dayne St. Clair stepped out of the box in the air with the ball, which would be an automatic red card.  It is beyond anyone how that did not get called or even go to VAR.  It looked clear and obvious based on the paused images, but NYCFC likely wants answers with that.

NYCFC can be positive about their record

This is repeated a lot, but it is truly unfortunate that Alonso Martínez will miss a lot of the season due to his ACL tear.  Since the Pigeons do not have a true starting striker, it was thought that the team would struggle to begin the 2026 campaign.  However, they entered the game against Miami with a four-game unbeaten streak, and then Sunday’s loss was their first one.

So, after the first five fixtures, NYCFC is 3-1-1.  This is better than expected, for it was thought that an acceptable start before the international break would be 2-2-1.  Thankfully, the Bronx side won their first two home matches and won on the road against the Philadelphia Union before then.  The loss to the Herons still stinks, but it is easier on the heart since it is the first one.

Of course, the big test will be what happens when NYCFC returns from the international break.  Only then will fans discover whether they are a contender, even without their star striker, or whether the start was luck mixed in with some incredible goals.