Playing through a rare dip in form, Inter Miami bid to get on track against visiting Toronto FC on Saturday.
Miami (11-3-6, 39 points) has won just one of its last six matches in all competitions. A 1-2-0 record sent the Herons out of the Leagues Cup in the group stage, and Inter Miami are 0-1-2 in their last three regular-season matches.
Yannick Bright received a red card in Wednesday’s 2-2 draw with the Philadelphia Union and will miss Saturday’s match. Rodrigo De Paul will return from a red-card suspension of his own.
German Berterame is available after almost a month in concussion protocol. Berterame was taken off the field in an ambulance following a rough collision with Efrain Morales in Miami’s 1-0 win over Montreal on July 25.
As Berterame put it, “the TV went out for me” after the collision, and he didn’t regain his memories of the incident until hours later.
“My family had a really hard time,” he said in Spanish. “My wife almost had a panic attack … but I’m doing well now.”
Despite their recent slump, Inter Miami are still in second place in the Eastern Conference and the overall league standings.
Miami earned a 4-2 win over Toronto FC on May 9, continuing a long string of success against the Canadian squad. The Herons are 9-2-2 against Toronto in all-time regular-season play, and 5-0-1 in Miami.
Injury-plagued Toronto (4-7-9, 21 points) is 1-0-2 in its last three matches, but yet another significant player has been sidelined. Niklas Dorsch underwent surgery for a facial fracture suffered in Wednesday’s 3-3 draw with Charlotte FC.
There is no set timeline for Dorsch’s return to action, but “he will be back training as soon as it is safe for him to do so,” Toronto coach Robin Fraser said. “He’ll probably have to wear a mask for a while, but he will be able to resume physical activity pretty quickly.”
Jonathan Osorio and Deandre Kerr will each miss their third straight match due to lower-body injuries. Walker Zimmerman is suspended for Saturday after receiving a red card against Charlotte.
Defender Nicksoen Gomis will be available after missing the last three months with a thigh injury.
Miami superstar Lionel Messi is tied for second in MLS with 13 goals and tied for fourth with nine assists. Daniel Salloi leads Toronto FC in goals (five) and assists (six).
–Field Level Media
