FORT LAUDERDALE — Inter Miami could have another player make his debut on Tuesday.
Facundo Farías, the heralded 20-year-old Argentine midfielder who signed with Inter Miami last month, will travel to Philadelphia for Tuesday’s Leagues Cup semifinals match against the Philadelphia Union, Inter Miami coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino announced following Monday’s training session. Farías and fellow Argentine signee Tomás Avilés both joined the team within the last few days and are just getting acclimated.
However, Martino added that bringing Farías to Philadelphia was not the original plan heading into the week.
Because he’s so new to the team, Farías was going to stay back and continue to train, but midfielder Edison Azcona injured his ankle in practice and will not be available against the Union. That created an opening that needed to be filled, and Farías made the most sense.
“Facu (Farías) came in the day before Tomás and trained well,” Martino said through an interpreter. “There was no intention to take him, but it seems like it was a little bit of pressure, but we have to do it for this need.”
The extent of Azcona’s injury is unknown.
Meanwhile, Martino also said that Avilés and midfielders Nicolás Stefanelli and Jean Mota will all stay back in Miami. Stefanelli and Mota are both recovering from separate injuries, but appear to be on track for a return soon.
Also of note, Lionel Messi appeared to get nicked up on his left leg at the beginning of Monday’s practice during the portion that was open to reporters. He hobbled for a few seconds, but was able to continue practicing.
Martino was not present at the time, but said there is no concern with Messi.
“I didn’t see exactly what happened, but I’d imagine that had it been something serious, everybody would be scandalized,” Martino said. “And since we’re all fine, nothing happened.”
الأسطورة ميسي كان يعاني في تدريبات اليوم ولكنه اكمل التدريبات مباشرة
— Messi Xtra (@M30Xtra) August 14, 2023
Farías, if he appears on Tuesday, would be the fifth new Inter Miami player to make his debut in the last six matches. Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba are the headliners, but midfielder Diego Gómez cannot be forgotten either. He has played in each of the last three matches and made his first Inter Miami start in the round of 16 against FC Dallas.
Although Azcona hasn’t played since July 15, the added reinforcement could be an extra boost as the flurry of Inter Miami games in a short period of time continues.
Miami has played two games each week since the start of the knockout stage began at the beginning of August. It won’t have more than three days off until the beginning of September.
Following Tuesday’s match against Philadelphia, Inter Miami will play Saturday in either the Leagues Cup final or third-place game. Then, Inter Miami will play four days later in the U.S. Open Cup semifinal against FC Cincinnati. Miami will follow that with three regular-season matches Aug. 26, Aug. 30 and Sept. 3 before finally getting six days off ahead of a Sept. 9 match against Kansas City. An Aug. 20 regular-season match against Charlotte FC was sandwiched in-between, but that has since been postponed to prevent games on back-to-back nights.
But first comes Tuesday’s matchup, one that has the inaugural Leagues Cup title within reach. The tournament’s top-three finishers also earn a spot in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
Philadelphia likely won’t be a cake walk, especially playing at home at Subaru Park. Everywhere Messi and Inter Miami go, they will face a sold-out, extra rowdy crowd, just like they did against Dallas. Tickets for Tuesday sold out even faster this time, and Philadelphia is a very strong team.
The Union have won 10 straight home matches and haven’t lost in 15 straight, dating back to March 25. It was the only time the Union have lost at home this season. You have to go all the way back to December 2021 to find Philadelphia’s next home loss, which came in the Eastern Conference Final. That’s 28 home games ago.
It’s a combination of a really good team and a tough environment to visit. The Union were the MLS Cup runner-ups last year, falling to LAFC in penalty kicks. They’ve finished in the top-three in the Eastern Conference four years in a row, including two first-place finishes in 2020 and 2022, and were winners of the Supporters’ Shield in 2020 for having the league’s best regular-season record. Philadelphia is currently third in the conference with 40 points (12-7-4), while Inter Miami is last with 18 (5-14-3).
Philadelphia is a balanced team, ranking in the top-five in regular season goals scored (39) and goals against (26). The Union particularly excel at scoring goals from distance, tying for the league-lead in goals scored outside the penalty area (9).
“The home field advantage is strong, but we also have our aspirations to be able to advance to the finals,” Martino said.
Philadelphia and Miami have faced each other nine times in history, with the Union leading the series at 5-2-2. One of Inter Miami’s two wins, however, came in Philadelphia in April 2021.
But, none of those matchups have been against Messi, and nor have they been against Busquets and Alba either.
“Because it’s a semifinal match, the stakes are pretty high,” Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender said. “But I think for us, it’s about going there and implementing our style of play and just competing for a full 90 minutes.”
Dallas and Cruz Azul have given Inter Miami the biggest challenges so far, but nobody has been able to top Inter Miami since the Messi-era began.
Now, Inter Miami will be put to the test again in another hostile environment.
