The new manager made tactical tweaks with Messi limited early, positioning Miami for success after a disappointing end to 2024
It was easy to doubt Javier Mascherano. Here was a manager who had never coached at the club level, had underwhelmed when handed a fine group of youth internationals for Argentina, and had been appointed – at least in part – due to his relationships with Inter Miami's star players.
If nothing else, this season was supposed to make for fascinating viewing.
And in the smallest of sample sizes, it has delivered. Mascherano hasn't done anything tactically revolutionary as Miami's head coach. There is no new style of play or groundbreaking changes that will shift the footballing landscape for years to come.
Even he admitted that Miami's best players – Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba – can't really be coached at this point. Instead, his job is in the small details. It's about getting players into the right spots, and making the kind of important tweaks that can get the most out of a group.
So far? Mission accomplished. Miami drew the first game of their MLS campaign, and have won the rest across all competitions. Three of them have come without Messi. In one, Mascherano's side were down to 10 men. Inter Miami now their first shot at revenge against Atlanta United – the club that knocked them out of the playoffs last year – in another edition of Sunday Night Soccer on Apple TV.
It's seldom simple, course. And stiffer competition will come. But after a few weeks and matches both in the CONCACAF Champions Cup and MLS, Miami appear a solid side with some nifty tactical tweaks potentially setting them up for a season of success.
GOAL looks at the adjustments the Argentine has made to in the early days of 2025.
GettyDe-fense
The issues were clear last year. There was a way to beat Miami: hit them on the break. The Herons were old and slow at the back. There were holes everywhere. Run at the back line – albeit one diluted by injuries – and you might just be able to make something happen.
It's ultimately how Atlanta United beat them in the playoffs. Miami lacked discipline. Their center backs could be dragged left and right, up and down, spaces forming with ease.
This year, though, things look different. Miami are clever in the way they set up. There is more purpose to their attacks, and they insist on defensive solidity before they break. The result is a more solid unit. In four games, they have allowed just seven shots on goal, and a combined expected goals of 2.1. Their xG/shot – effectively a measure of how good the chances they yield – is a meager 0.09.
Last year, it was a tick higher at 0.1. Towards the end of the season it spiked to 0.15. These are fine margins, but put simply, Miami are allowing fewer chances, and those they do are of a far worse quality.
AdvertisementGettyYannick Bright, unheralded superstar?
There is always something to be said for the footballer with boundless work rate. It's an ageless archetype at this point, the all-action guy in the middle of the park who can do all of the dirty work that allows someone else to thrive. Jordan Henderson nailed it at Liverpool. Rodrigo De Paul has mastered it for Argentina.
And Yannick Bright has grasped it in Miami. In truth, the former University of New Hampshire midfielder has been at this level for a while. He was impressive in spells for Miami last year, plugging holes admirably when Busquets either dropped into central defensive roles or missed time.
But under Mascherano, everything is tighter. Busquets, never a particularly mobile player, seldom moves from a sitting role. And it's Bright that allows this all to happen. Watch a game, and he seems to be everywhere. He is 10th among MLS midfielders in tackles and interceptions. No defensive midfielder has won more tackles in the middle of the pitch.
The data suggests more of the same. According to , he is in the 94th percentile among tackles, 99th percentile in interceptions, 97th in blocks, and 95th in clearances. All of this has come in just 152 minutes of work. Per 90 minutes, there isn't a more effective defensive midfielder in the league.
What's more impressive, though, is how this all pieces together. Bright plays three progressive passes per game, and, on average, dribbles forward less than once per 90 minutes. His remit here is to win the ball, and shuffle it to Busquets, who can then spring attacks. And he is near-perfect at it.
GettyLuis Suarez's work rate – and flexibility
It's sometimes painful to watch Suarez run. He really shouldn't do it – not at this age, not on these pitches, and not with his knees. He admitted, in fact, that he plays through pain pretty much every day he wakes up. But call it stupidity or elite mentality, the Uruguayan is still tearing up the pitch.
A few questions were raised after Miami let Leo Campana go to New England. Their backup striker gone. Suarez no longer had any cover.
Yet he isn't playing in a way that necessarily conserves energy. Miami don't like not having the ball. If they lose it, they press to win it back. And, in particular, they don't want to drop deep. Controlled chaos is the name of the game here.
With energetic midfielders – Tadeo Allende and Benjamin Cremaschi – to cover all of the gaps, they put pressure on the back line. And if they do get played through, Bright is there to do the sweeping up.
What that does require, though, is for Suarez to do his part from the front. For Mascherano, he follows the ball, closes gaps, and forces passes into areas where opponents don't want to have them. His numbers in terms of tackles and interceptions don't jump off the page – he is seldom actually the ball, but he does force mistakes from others.
A look at Miami's opener against Houston captures his impact in full. Suarez leaves the defender no option but to pass into pressure. His teammates win it back. Six seconds later the ball is in the net.
And then there's the on-ball stuff. Suarez is no longer an immediate focal point who can camp on the last man. Instead, he drifts and roams, with players running in behind. The perfect example is Miami's wonderfully crafted winner against Charlotte.
Suarez dropped deep, created a moment of unpredictability for the visiting side. The center backs didn't know whether to press or drop. In the end, they did neither, and Suarez provided a perfect chipped pass – that Allende finished wonderfully.
AFPLionel Messi's role? TBD
Questions remain, though, as to what exactly might happen with Messi. It is easy to forget that Miami's superstar has played just 90 minutes of MLS football this season. It is worth pointing out, of course, that he was magical in that spell, turning in two assists and helping the Herons to a 2-2 draw with 10 men to open the campaign.
But that is the only time Miami have dropped points this season. Granted, that is a laughably small sample size. Still, they look a nicely balanced team without the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner. This, primarily, is a credit to the manager. He has figured out how to put the right pieces in the right places so that his team can win sans superstar. It's something that no manager in recent years has been able to do.
Messi did return Thursday night, coming on after half time, and finding the net in stoppage of a laughably low-intensity Champions Cub win over Jamaican side Cavalier. It was probably a perfect warm up. But then there's the issue as to what, exactly, happens when Messi comes back in full?
Suarez isn't going to go. Busquets and Bright are both indispensable. That leaves him with three choices. He could ask Messi to run more. He could bench one of his industrious midfielders. Or he could leave him out altogether. The first and third options are impossible. The second is the only realistic choice.
And who goes? Allende is scoring goals. Segovia has turned in a shift. Cremaschi is doing his job with aplomb. Of course, Messi's attacking contributions alone make him a net positive. But adjustments will be required to ensure everything runs smoothly. Things are going so well, so far. Very interesting to see what happens next.