Inter Miami CF earned a hard-fought 1-2 victory over the New York Red Bulls on the road despite the absences of several key players. The team showed its quality depth, counting on players who were prepared to help the team when called upon, including goalkeeper John McCarthy, defenders A.J. DeLaGarza, Christian Makoun, Dylan Nealis, and midfielders Matías Pellegrini and Wil Trapp.
Ahead of the match, manager Diego Alonso and versatile veteran DeLaGarza stated their belief that every member of the squad is always prepared to contribute.
“It is a great opportunity for other players to show their worth, to help the team and show that they are capable of being there and helping when necessary,” said Alonso. “I trust the group of players that we have.”
“If I’m called upon, I’ll be ready. That’s been my motto this whole year, to always be prepared because you never know what can happen in this league,” added DeLaGarza.
The team was without regular starters Juan Agudelo, Leandro González Pirez, Rodolfo Pizarro, Andrés Reyes and Luis Robles, but persevered to secure its second road victory of the season through the strength of the team’s depth. DeLaGarza made his second start and appearance of the season, Makoun made his first start and his second appearance for the team after debuting in the team’s first match, McCarthy stepped into goal in place of Robles for the first time, Nealis slotted into the starting XI for the fifth time and midfielders Pellegrini and Trapp started for the second time since August.
"I think it was an emotional match, a really difficult one for all of us. We were missing five regular starters and it was the moment for the players who were behind them, waiting for an opportunity to help the team. I think they did well and helped the team,” stated Alonso.
Each of the players who stepped up competed, doing their part to help propel Inter Miami to victory: DeLaGarza made four clearances, one tackle and one interception; Makoun made six clearances and won possession four times; McCarthy made three saves; Nealis made seven clearances, won possession six times and helped progress the ball effectively; Pellegrini notched his first MLS goal and won a game-high seven fouls and won 63% of his game-high 19 total duels; Trapp won possession a team-high 11 times and made three interceptions, while also pinging difficult passes to teammates.
“I’m happy to be captain of this group of guys that worked themselves into the ground on the field today. When you’re captain of a team like that, it only makes you proud,” said Gonzalo Higuaín who captained the team on the night.
