After a thrilling come-from-behind victory in the Hell is Real Derby, the Columbus Crew travel down south to Miami, where they will take on Inter Miami at the new Nu Stadium. The Crew looks to build off a massive victory last Saturday against a Miami team that has won both matches since the resumption of MLS play, without Lionel Messi. That said, Miami certainly have their weaknesses and strengths and will likely be without Messi and others again on Saturday. Here is what you need to know as the Black & Gold get ready to do battle in the 305. 

Inter Miami at a glance:

Form: W-W-W-W-W

Record: 11-4-2  (37 Points)

Leading Scorer: Lionel Messi,  (12 goals)

Assist Leader: Lionel Messi (7 assists)

Player to watch: Casemiro (Unless Messi plays)

Casemiro made his MLS debut with Miami last Saturday against Montreal and immediately looked like one of, if not the best, central midfielders in the league. While there’s some debate about how this signing came about, there’s no debate about the Real Madrid and Manchester United stars’ ability. Casemiro is still an elite playmaker in possession with the ability to connect play and pick apart defenses without breaking a sweat. He also has an unbelievable soccer brain that has seen just about everything over his 16-year career. Making his home debut, Casemiro will be looking to make a statement and endear himself to the crowd in his new hometown. 

How Inter Miami Play:

Messi’s “Footballing Godfather,” Guillermo Hoyos, is currently at the helm in Miami, having taken over after Javier Mascherano, erm, removed himself from the head coaching position. Hoyos has a long coaching career in South America and Mexico before joining up with Messi in Miami. Now at the helm, Hoyos hasn’t changed much, except the vibes, in Miami. 

In large part, Miami play similarly to how they have played in the past since Messi joined. Indeed, the style of play is very similar to Columbus. Miami also have a huge emphasis on keeping possession, counterpressing, and dominating play. Miami do so typically out of a 4-3-3 formation where they split their center backs wide and look to find midfielders in central areas who can then play forward. Miami also emphasizes finding switches of play as much as possible and letting isolated attackers go at defenders in 1v1 scenarios. Defensively, Miami don’t want to defend, so they try to win the ball back as soon as possible after losing possession. If they are unable, they will fall back into a 4-1-4-1 formation about ¾ of the way up the field. In this shape, Miami looks to funnel play to one side and then force long balls where they can more easily regain possession. 

How the Crew can Win

If we are all honest, not many people are expecting the Crew to win Saturday; however, the Crew are a good matchup against Miami and with Miami missing some key players, there’s every chance the Crew could snag three points on the road. Here is what will need to happen if the Crew is going to make a big statement on Saturday. 

1. Dominate Possession: Miami and the Crew both love to have possession. In fact, the sides rank 2nd and third respectively in Possession % per match in MLS. Neither the Crew or Miami are great defensively. If the Crew can force Miami to defend more often, they’ll likely reap the rewards for that. 
2. Be Direct in Transition: Inter Miami is a very good team. Their biggest weakness, by a mile, is their inability to defend in transition. Inter Miami love to push numbers forward in possession and frankly don’t have the energy, legs, or youth to relentlessly chase opponents in transition for 90 minutes. Look for the Crew to look for moments to get after Miami in transition on Saturday. 
3. Counterpress Effectively: Miami will also look to attack in transition when possible, because Columbus is also vulnerable to counterattacks. Look for the Crew to “hunt” the ball quickly after losing possession to limit Miami’s opportunities to run in behind.