Preview: Inter Miami vs New York City FC - prediction, team news, lineups

The MLS post-season is almost at its end, but first Inter Miami will lock horns with New York City FC on Saturday, November 29, for a place in the final.

In essence, this is the Eastern Conference final, where the winner will be the last remaining team on the other side of the USA to have a shot at the MLS Cup on December 6.

Match preview

In all fairness, any football pundit could have predicted that Inter Miami would make it this far into the competition.

Inter have shown some flashes of brilliance this season and were agonisingly close to winning some silverware in the form of the Leagues Cup.

The Herons narrowly missed out on retaining the Supporters’ Shield, so the last available slice of success for them is the MLS Cup.

Head coach Javier Mascherano has always maintained that winning the cup was his aim, and now his side are only two games away from lifting the trophy for the first time in their history.

The Florida outfit got to this point in emphatic fashion, seeing off FC Cincinnati 4-0 on their own patch in the conference semi-final last weekend.

Returning to Chase Stadium is a huge positive for Inter, who are now on a four-game winning run in Fort Lauderdale.

The hosts are also undefeated against these opponents across their previous four competitive head-to-heads in Florida.

In fact, the last four meetings between the sides have not produced a win for the away side, regardless of the venue, which will slightly concern Pascal Jansen and his troops.

Having said that, New York City FC went up against all odds and saw off the Supporters’ Shield winners, Philadelphia Union, last weekend to book their spot in this conference final.

The Cityzens are a gritty outfit and have now won their previous three away dates on the bounce, part of a run of four wins from five matches.

Before Inter’s domination in recent years of this fixture, NY City won six of their previous seven MLS head-to-heads, starting from 2020 but effectively ending in 2023.

Since then, the visitors have not laid a glove on the Herons, but considering what is at stake at the end of Saturday night, the travelling party will throw everything they have at the hosts.

Inter Miami form (all competitions):

New York City FC form (all competitions):

Team News

The only injury concerns for Inter Miami are David Ruiz (hamstring) and Ryan Sailer, who have been missing for a while, but Mascherano’s problems are more of the nicer kind.

The former Barcelona and Liverpool midfielder opted to start Mateo Silvetti ahead of Luis Suarez recently, and the 19-year-old has demonstrated his ability with a goal and three assists in his last two appearances.

Additionally, he has struck a unique partnership with Lionel Messi, as the captain leads from the front and mentors the next generation.

The Argentine captain already netted 29 goals in the regular season for the Golden Boot, but he has also broken a playoff record by bagged six goals and as many assists in the post-season.

Tadeo Allende has also been performing remarkably recently, securing five goals and two assists in the playoffs, giving the coach a huge selection headache.

NY City’s leading goalscorer, Alonso Martinez, is battling a knee injury, while Andres Perea also has an issue that will keep him out of the conference final.

The good news for coach Jansen is that Aiden O'Neill is eligible to play again, after serving his one-game suspension for an accumulation of yellow cards.

Club legend Maxi Moralez will be the key man for the visitors on Saturday night, as he was the sole goalscorer in last week’s semi-final against the Union.

The visitors will require goalkeeper Matt Freese to be at his best to stop the Miami onslaught, as the US Men’s National Team player registered three clean sheets in four playoff games and made five crucial saves in last weekend’s 1-0 victory.

Inter Miami possible starting lineup:

Rios, Weigandt, Falcon, Busquets, Allen, Alba; Allende, De Paul, Rodriguez; Messi, Silvetti

New York City FC possible starting lineup:

Freese; Ojeda, Gray, Martins, Gustavo, O’Toole; Moralez, O’Neill, Haak, Wolf; Mercau