Inter Miami will travel upstate to face Orlando City SC Saturday, Sept. 12 at 7:30 p.m. ET. The match will mark the third time the teams face each other and an opportunity to break the deadlock, as the series is currently split at one win apiece.
The match will also provide an opportunity for Inter Miami to continue its unbeaten run which has now stretched to three games. For midfielder Jay Chapman, this is a sign of the team’s growth in its inaugural season.
“I think these past few weeks haven’t been easy. The result the other night, it wasn’t the prettiest game, but it took a lot of guts and courage for us to play the way we did and to hold on to that lead,” said Chapman. “I think these past few games where we’re on an unbeaten three-game run show the growth this team has gone through. At the beginning of the season we didn’t get the results that we wanted but we always knew that we were capable.”
“We’re on a much clearer path,” he added. “I think the team is in a great spot. These results, especially these wins at home, are going to help us a lot going into this next stretch.”
Manager Diego Alonso shared this sentiment, expressing his excitement as the team continues to round into form.
“We’re very happy with the evolution of the team. We’re happy with the players that have been incorporated into the squad and with each one we continue to improve,” said Alonso. “The time we’ve put in working has also helped us improve. We have to continue this growth to be able to fight for a playoff spot."
The match against Orlando will also present the first opportunity for Inter Miami to play in front of fans since its March 7 road match against D.C. United, a prospect that excited both Alonso and defender Dylan Nealis.
“We’re really excited for the match tomorrow. It generates a lot of enthusiasm for us to be able to share this match in Orlando with our fans,” said Alonso. “I think we have a big opportunity and hopefully we can give them a great match and dedicate a victory to them.”
“It’s going to be exciting [to play in front of fans]. Hopefully as many of them as possible can travel up to Orlando and it will only make the game more fun to watch. It’s going to be great to be there,” added Nealis.
With Inter Miami’s next three matches of the 2020 MLS season now announced, Chapman is also looking forward to what it has to do in the next phase of the season to continue to compete.
“I think this next stretch is extremely important for us. We have one home game in the new set of three games, so getting points away is going to be very important. It’s going to be essential for us to remain strong and attack those two away games and get points from them,” he said. “I think we have a lot of guys who are hungry to win. We’ve gotten our first couple wins out of the way. In this league, winning kind of becomes a habit. If you’re able to go on a run, it’s those teams that do best at the end of the year. We’re going to use these next few games to get ourselves on a run coming towards the end of the season.”
