Preview: DC United vs. Inter Miami - prediction, team news, lineups

In their final fixture before the Tata Martino era begins, Inter Miami travel to the capital city on Saturday, when they visit MLS Eastern Conference rivals DC United.

Inter have taken just two points from their last five league matches to sit bottom of the standings, while United are competing for a playoff place after claiming their eighth win of the season in midweek.

Match preview

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Posting a fourth away victory of 2023, DC United edged out FC Dallas on Tuesday night, when Taxiarchis Fountas scored the only goal of the game at Toyota Stadium.

Wayne Rooney's men had lost three of their previous four MLS fixtures, but the Greek forward's second-half strike earned them three precious points in Texas, and they now reconvene with an Inter Miami side that they defeated 2-1 as recently as early June.

Occupying eighth place in the Eastern Conference after 22 matches, the Red and Blacks are certainly on course to improve upon last year's dismal season, when they finished stone-last by a margin of seven points.

Among Major League Soccer's top eight clubs in terms of goals scored during the current campaign, Rooney now has them pushing for playoff qualification.

United's first 10 home matches have seen them record a modest four successes, though, so they will surely sense a chance to secure back-to-back wins on Saturday, when the East's bottom side come to town.

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Leading Inter Miami for the final time, interim head coach Javier Morales will oversee the visitors at Audi Field this weekend, before handing over the reins to new boss Tata Martino on Monday and reverting to his role as an assistant.

Without a win during his time in charge, Inter are two points adrift at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, following consecutive draws at the start of July - against Austin FC and Columbus Crew.

Alongside Martino, two other ex-Barcelona men are soon due to ride to the Herons' rescue: Lionel Messi and former Blaugrana teammate Sergio Busquets are pencilled in to make their debuts against Mexican club Cruz Azul later this month.

In his final home fixture as temporary boss, Morales - whose spell has been plagued by injuries and the absence of several internationals - saw his side salvage a 2-2 draw against the Crew in midweek, when Josef Martinez netted Inter's 90th-minute equaliser in spectacular style.

The Fort Lauderdale club - who will soon compete in the US Open Cup semi-finals - now journey to Washington DC in search of a first MLS victory since May.

Team News

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DC United coach Wayne Rooney will welcome Christian Benteke back from suspension on Saturday, and the hosts' leading scorer - with eight league goals this year - should join Taxiarchis Fountas in a front three.

Goalkeeper Alex Bono made his first MLS start for the Black and Red in midweek, and after keeping a clean sheet he will hope to retain his place ahead of Tyler Miller.

Meanwhile, Inter Miami midfielder Rodolfo Pizarro - who is set to be traded before Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets arrive - will still be in contention for the trip to DC, despite receiving interest from several Mexican clubs and Los Angeles Galaxy.

Injury-prone forward Robbie Robinson, though, has picked up a hamstring problem and missed training this week; defensive duo DeAndre Yedlin (USA) and Kamal Miller (Canada) are still in action at the Gold Cup.

Benjamin Cremaschi, Leonardo Campana and top scorer Josef Martinez were all named in the MLS Team of the Matchday earlier this week, and the latter's acrobatic late leveller against Columbus tied him with Dwayne De Rosario for the ninth-most goals in MLS history.

DC United possible starting lineup:

Bono; Birnbaum, Williams, Pines; Durkin, Canouse, O'Brien, Santos; Dajome, Benteke, Fountas

Inter Miami possible starting lineup:

Callender; Fray, Kryvtsov, Allen; Cremaschi, Ruiz, Arroyo, Taylor; Pizarro; Campana, Martinez

We say: DC United 2-1 Inter Miami

As Inter have conceded 19 goals in their last nine league matches, their second away win of the MLS season is surely not on the agenda this weekend. DC United can be defensively suspect too, but they should prosper on home soil, with Christian Benteke back at Wayne Rooney's disposal.

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