Why Javier Mascherano deserves the criticism for Inter Miami's struggles | OneFootball

Inter Miami is living its worst moment since the Lionel Messi era after losing three of their last four in all competitions, including an embarrassing 4-1 defeat at Minnesota United in MLS play on Saturday afternoon.

And while Messi, Luis Suarez and company are drawing plenty of scrutiny, most of the media focus falls on one man: first-year manager Javier Mascherano.

The Herons announced Javier Mascherano as the new Herons coach after former boss Tata Martino departed the club after the 2024 season for what he assured were personal reasons.

After coaching Argentina to an Olympic gold medal in 2024, the "Jefecito" was brought to try and build on Martino's achievements (winning the 2023 Leagues Cup and 2024 MLS Supporters' Shield)

Instead, the last weeks have felt like Miami has gone in reverse, and it's unclear whether Mascherano is the man to turn them around.

The seat is warming

On social media, some fans want Mascherano out. However, José Armando, a journalist from Claro Sport, assures that the former Argentine midfielder will continue in charge of the team until the FIFA Club World Cup.

The only way Mascherano gets fired is if a catastrophe happens. But what is Catastrophe by Miami's standards?

Inter Miami is currently in fourth place in the Eastern Conference (though they do have a match in hand). And they just absorbed their largest margin of defeat in a game in which Messi started since his summer 2023 arrival.

Strange tactics against the Loons

Moreover, Mascherano's tactical plan was a strange one. With Luis Suarez unavailable, Mascherano decided to play Lionel Messi at false nine, a position he hasn't played since the early stages of his career with Pep Guardiola.

This decision cost the Herons the ability to have a player in the box to score goals. Limiting Messi to play false nine is useless; he needs to be in touch with the ball, and Minnesota noticed that.

They saw that Inter Miami didn't generate enough danger in the box, and decided to take that advantage in their favor. Two or three passes were enough to break the Herons' lines and go against goalkeeper Oscar Ustari.

Most problematically, Mascherano didn't appear to recognize the problem, opting to keep the same tactics in place well into the second half. It's just one example, but it's part of a trend: In the last 10 games in all competitions, Inter Miami have won only three, conceding 16 goals.

If Mascherano is guaranteed to be in charge through the Club World Cup, that gives him at least eight matches to show improvement. But it's unclear what would be considered good enough to keep the job for the remainder of the season.