Inter Miami's impressive 2024 season came to an abrupt ending at the hands of Atlanta United in Round One of the MLS Cup Playoffs.
The south Florida club were arguably the outright favorites by many to lift MLS Cup this December, but that won't be happening after Atlanta toppled the Herons in the best-of-three format, winning two games to Miami's one. Miami was expected to take care of business in quick fashion against an Atlanta team that barely clinched a wild card spot but was instead shocked at the weekend.
Lionel Messi's MVP-caliber season in just 19 games is now all for nothing from a team perspective, and the same can be said about Luis Suárez's 20 goals scored during the regular season.
So, where does Miami go from here after not making it past Round One despite claiming the single-season points record and Supporters' Shield title?
A good place to start would be addressing the defense. It was evident during the regular season that if Miami were to get knocked out of the postseason, it would likely be because of its leaky defense. When a team has aging stars leading the frontline that don't press as much as the rest of the team, it makes defensive transitions much harder to tackle.
Tomás Avilés is without a doubt Miami's best defender, but head coach Tata Martino cannot keep relying on Sergio Busquets to slide in from the midfield to help out in defense. The Herons had three players on loan—David Martínez, Nicolás Freire and Marcelo Weigandt—and shouldn't be brought back if Miami wishes to conquer MLS Cup in 2025.
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Since Avilés is a rather aggressive defender, Miami needs to pair him alongside an experienced defender that is more composed in one-on-ones. Ryan Sailor doesn't fit the bill and Serhiy Kryvtsov lacks the pace to make recovery runs with the high defensive line Miami plays with. The goalkeeper position led by Drake Callender could be upgraded, too, as he isn't the most reliable of shot-stoppers.
The Miami front office then has to then decide which players they want to bring back for 2025 and beyond. Players like Jordi Alba, Suárez and Matías Rojas have expiring contracts as Alba and Rojas have club options for next season.
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Not winning MLS Cup with this star-studded squad is definitely a failure for Martino. Perhaps David Beckham and the Mas brothers decide to move in a different direction for another experienced coach who will get the team fit and firing again for next year's CONCACAF Champions Cup and the highly anticipated 2025 FIFA Club World Cup that will be played in the United States.
As Messi and Suárez inch closer and closer to the end of their incredible careers, the Herons still dream of lifting MLS Cup—but time isn't on their side.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as What Happens Now for Inter Miami After Early MLS Cup Playoffs Exit?.
