Inter Miami will be without several key players when they welcome Atlanta United to Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Saturday night.
The Herons are chasing second place in the Eastern Conference, and a win would also allow them to secure home advantage through at least the first round of the 2025 MLS Cup Playoffs. Yet, a loss could be catastrophic, putting them at risk of dropping out of the top four on Decision Day.
After celebrating the retiring Sergio Busquets, Herons supporters will honor Jordi Alba after the left back surprisingly announced his retirement at season’s end. Despite renewing through 2027 earlier in the year, the 36-year-old will hang up his boots after Miami’s playoff run.
Without the likes of Lionel Messi, Rodrigo De Paul, Telasco Segovia, Ian Fray and others, here’s how head coach Javier Mascherano’s side could line up.
FREE NEWSLETTER. New SI FC Newsletter Global Embed. Sign Up to Get Informed With SI FC. dark
GK: Oscar Ustari—After sitting out last match in Miami’s 4–1 win over New England, expect the 39-year-old backstop to come back in between the sticks.
RB: Marcelo Weigandt—The Argentine’s role as starting right back has seemingly diminished in recent weeks, but he will look to impress with Ian Fray representing Jamaica.
CB: Gonzalo Luján—Given Maximiliano Falcón’s suspension and Noah Allen representing Greece with the U-21s, Luján gets the start.
CB: Tomás Avilés—The young center back has a penchant for cards, having earned four red cards and 23 yellows in his first 61 MLS games.
LB: Jordi Alba—The Barcelona and Spain legend announced his retirement this week and will be honored after the match.
RM: Baltasar Rodríguez—The young midfielder has broken into starting contention for Miami in recent weeks and could play an elevated role in the playoffs.
CM: Sergio Busquets—In the final few weeks of his career, Busquets will want to go out on a high in the regular season and playoffs.
CM: Yannick Bright—One of Miami’s best MLS SuperDraft picks, Bright has amassed 1,280 minutes this season.
LM: Tadeo Allende—The Herons’ most versatile player, Allende has played the third most minutes in attack this season, only trailing Messi and Luis Suárez.
ST: Luis Suárez—The Uruguayan has nine MLS goals this season. Can he get to double digits before the campaign wraps up?
ST: Fafa Picault—A Haiti international and MLS veteran, Picault has not played 90 minutes since August.
