Preview: Inter Miami vs Seattle Sounders - prediction, team news, lineups

In a rematch from the Leagues Cup final last month, Inter Miami will welcome the Seattle Sounders to Chase Stadium in MLS action on Tuesday.

A 3-0 defeat at Charlotte FC over the weekend dropped the Herons down to eighth in the Eastern Conference, while Seattle are still fourth in the West despite a 2-2 draw against the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Match preview

From Eastern Conference title contenders to a side currently outside the top seven, Miami have experienced a significant drop in recent weeks.

They enter this meeting on a two-match losing streak across all competitions, having won just one of their previous four competitive fixtures (3-1 against Orlando City), failing to score in their last two outings, even with captain Lionel Messi.

Javier Mascherano’s men are currently a point behind New York City FC for an automatic place in the first round of the playoffs, but have two games in hand.

The Herons have triumphed in their previous six matches played at Chase Stadium, and by winning their final five regular-season contests in Fort Lauderdale, they will set a new club record for home victories in this competition, surpassing last year’s total of 11.

Their only two defeats at home in the regular season occurred when they gave up the opening goal, and this team have not won an MLS affair when conceding first since the final matchday of the 2024 regular season (6-2 over the New England Revolution).

Since May 2023, Miami have claimed points in six of their seven home meetings against Western Conference opposition, winning the last one at Chase Stadium versus the Los Angeles Galaxy in August (3-1).

Seattle seem to have put their disappointing finish at the Club World Cup in the rearview mirror and have been among the most consistent sides in this competition for months.

Since exiting that tournament with three defeats in June, the Rave Green have suffered just one loss in their last 16 competitive fixtures, 1-0 at Minnesota United in mid-August.

Coming into Tuesday’s clash, they are unbeaten in their previous five matches played across all competitions, and have points in 13 of their last 15 MLS games.

Brian Schmetzer's men have picked up nine points domestically this season when conceding the opening goal, though only two of those points were claimed away from home.

The Rave Green need four wins and a draw from their final six regular-season affairs to surpass their points total from a year ago (57), while they can reach the 60-point mark for only the fourth time in their MLS history by winning five of their remaining outings.

Tuesday will mark their first visit to Fort Lauderdale against the Herons, who they have beaten in both of their prior meetings, without a single goal conceded, including a 3-0 victory to lift the Leagues Cup trophy late last month.

Inter Miami Major League Soccer form:

Inter Miami form (all competitions):

Seattle Sounders Major League Soccer form:

Seattle Sounders form (all competitions):

Team News

In their defeat on Saturday, Miami were without Fabrice Picault, who had a quad issue, while David Ruiz, Baltasar Rodriguez and Allen Obando were all sidelined due to hamstring strains.

With 11 minutes remaining in that encounter, Tomas Aviles received a second caution and thus will be suspended for this clash, while Luis Surez will also be banned for two more matches following his spitting incident in the Herons Leagues Cup defeat to the Sounders.

A sore knee kept Joao Paulo, Pedro De la Vega and Paul Arriola out of the Rave Green lineup this past weekend, Ryan Kent sat out with a shoulder strain and Stuart Hawkins did not feature because of a quad injury.

Jesus Ferreira and Daniel Musovski scored opening half goals for Seattle against LA, while Osaze De Rosario, Alexander Roldan and Paul Rothrock netted in their Leagues Cup victory against Miami last month.

Inter Miami possible starting lineup:

Ustari; Fray, Allen, Falcon, Alba; De Paul, Bright, Busquets, Segovia; Messi, Allende

Seattle Sounders possible starting lineup:

Frei; A. Roldan, Andrade, Ragen, Tolo; Vargas, C. Roldan; Ferreira, Rusnak, Morris; Musovski

We say: Inter Miami 3-1 Seattle Sounders

The defeat to Seattle in the Leagues Cup final may still be fresh in the minds of the Herons, and we expect their desire for payback and determination will enable them to put forth a strong all-around performance on Tuesday.

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