Inter Miami at Sporting Kansas City

When: Saturday, April 13 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Children’s Mercy Park
How to Watch: MLS Season Pass

Head-to-Head:

Record
SKC: 2W-1L-4D
MIA: 3W-2L-3D

Last Result
SKC: 3-3 Draw vs Portland Timbers
MIA: 3-1 Loss at Monterrey (Champions Cup)

Preview

It’s time!!! (Bruce Buffer voice)

The match most have had circled on their calendars is upon us as Sporting Kansas City host the star-studded Inter Miami. For the first time since 2008, Sporting Kansas City, formerly the Kansas City Wizards, will play a regular season match at Arrowhead Stadium, and what a match it will be.

Elephant in the room time. By now, we all know why this game was moved to Arrowhead, and if you don’t, you live under a rock.

Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and company look to bounce back from a poor performance that saw them eliminated from the Champions Cup midweek. With one less trophy a possibility, Tata Martino and his squad set their sites back on the MLS regular season led by Messi, who is coming off an injury.

Didn't realize Messi was already in town https://t.co/sVODivzSJJ

— Sporting Kansas City (@SportingKC) April 9, 2024

The question everyone is asking: Will Messi play?

I’m pretty sure the only person with an answer to that question is Messi himself. I’m not a betting man, but I’d say it’s safe to assume he will see playing time after playing 45′ and scoring against the Colorado Rapids last week in a 2-2 draw, followed by a full 90′ in the 3-1 defeat.

Lots of speculation, lots of opinions. But until we know for sure, we must wait until gameday.

Okay, time to talk Sporting.

The result from last matchday against the Portland Timbers is starting to feel like the new norm.

First half: SKC are on the front foot and dominate the game

Second half: Dumpster fire

On the bright side, Willy Agada is scoring goals. We’ve talked at length about the lack of goals from forwards and then there goes Willy, providing two goals, which could have been three if not for a missed penalty kick. In fact, he is one of only 3 forwards who have scored for SKC this season and is the only forward who has multiple goals to his name.

1. Willy Agada – 3
2. Dany Rosero – 2
3. Remi Walter – 2
4. Alan Pulido – 1
5. Alenis Vargas – 1
6. Erik Thommy – 1
7. Jake Davis – 1
8. Nemanja Radoja – 1

Center back Dany Rosero found the back of the net once again tying him with Remi Walter for the second-top scorer on the team.

SKC has scored multiple goals in four straight matches, which if FotMob is right, is the first time since 2018, not including the 2020 regular season that had a large break due to the pandemic.

On the less-than-bright side, Sporting KC gave up three unanswered goals in the second half at home for the second time in a three-week span. Not a great spot to be in with Miami coming to town. If you find yourself wondering who is to blame, the answer is “yes”.

“We keep dropping points at home, but it’s all part of the game. I mean, we all make mistakes sometimes, but I know we cannot just keep saying that. We’re going to fix it. We just really have to fix it. It’s on every player, not just the defenders or the striker or the midfielders,” Agada said after the Portland match.

Saturday’s match will be an opportunity for Sporting to measure up against the pre-season favorites to lift the MLS Cup Trophy.

The gameplan will obviously look different depending on Messi’s availability, but nonetheless, the second-half defense will need to be much stronger against a team of this caliber. Miami lead the league in goals scored (16) and are top-three in possession (57.5%)

On the flipside, the Inter Miami defense is not impenetrable. They have allowed 12 goals this season.

If SKC can play a complete 90 minutes of soccer, they can definitely take out the mighty south Florida super-club. The keyword is “IF”.

Sneaky matchup I’m keeping my eye on: Davis and Alba on the wing.

The connection between Alba and Messi is a work of art and it will be on Davis’ shoulders to breakup that connection.

Prediction

This is one of the biggest stages Sporting KC has found themselves on in a very long time. Not only is it an opportunity to show how good you are, it’s an opportunity for all the extra eyes on this match to see why Kansas City is a host city for the 2026 World Cup and why the sport is such an important fabric of the community.

This is only the second time Miami and SKC have met in MLS. SKC lost 3-2 on the road in 2023 against a Messi-and-Suarez-less Inter Miami squad.

SKC 1 MIA 2