The Problem With Inter Miami’s Designated Players

It’s fair to say that Inter Miami‘s Designated Players have not lived up to their price tags.

Besides Gonzalo Higuain who has eight goals and two assists on the season, the main criticisms have fallen on Blaise Matuidi and Rodolfo Pizarro.

Matuidi and Pizarro came to MLS looking to make their mark on the league. A year and a half later, both players look below the standard of a Designated Player.

With the end of the season quickly approaching, what has gone wrong?

Game Recap

MLS is a league where teams need their star players to perform well.

Unfortunately for Inter Miami, they’ve got their DP signings very wrong. Disregarding Matias Pellegrini who’s now on loan at Estudiantes, the acquisitions of Pizarro and Matuidi look like poor roster moves.

Oftentimes, it feels as though Neville is shoehorning in the duo because they’re Designated Players. Take the loss against NYCFC for example.

That night, Miami’s tactics were clear: go direct.

Lining up in a 4-3-3 that switched to a 3-5-1, Miami’s center backs – specifically Leandro Gonzalez Pirez, looked to play long balls over the top to Lewis Morgan. For the first 20 minutes, Inter Miami stuck to the game plan.

By the 19th minute, Morgan had three shots and one successful dribble. Miami looked comfortable and in control until their mental mistakes got to them.

As NYCFC started to grow into the game, Miami’s personal mistakes started to unravel the game plan Neville had set up.

Kelvin Leerdam was caught sleeping and let Valentin Castellanos sneak in behind for a free header to put The Pigeons up 0-1.

Before the end of the half, Leerdam – again, had a mental lapse where he gave away a handball in the box that led to a penalty.

By that point, NYCFC was up 0-2. After that, Miami never really re-gained control of the match.

Neville then switched to a flat back four at halftime to no avail.

Square Pegs, Round Holes

Looking at Whoscored.com‘s average player positions, there was a clear reason why Saturday night fell flat:

Looking back at the NYCFC game, Higuain and Pizarro were taking up the same positions on the pitch again.

Neville has said he wanted Higuain to play higher up the field, but if no one is getting him the ball, he tends to drop deep: #InterMiamiCF pic.twitter.com/82rLpCMOYU

— Alex Windley ☀️ (@aaw_1998) August 16, 2021

Pizarro and Higuain were taking up the same spots on the pitch.

Normally, Neville would want Gonzalo further up the field to get into dangerous goal-scoring spots. If no one is supplying him the ball, then the 33-year-old is forced to drop deep.

Wednesday night’s game plan did not suit Rodolfo Pizarro. The Mexico international is not the type of player to play direct football. Pizarro likes the ball at his feet, he’s at his best when he can use his dribbling skills to evade defenders and set up his teammates.

Against NYCFC, because of the style of play, Pizarro was largely anonymous:

13 minutes in and Pizarro only has 5 touches.#InterMiamiCF pic.twitter.com/kuhoP5NGLR

— Alex Windley ☀️ (@aaw_1998) August 15, 2021

If Inter Miami were going to play this direct style of soccer, it would have made sense to have started someone like Brek Shea or Indiana Vassilev. Vassilev and Shea are both players that are capable of providing width and pace to play off the shoulders of defenders.

NYCFC’s defense looked susceptible to long balls over the top for the first 19 minutes. Starting Pizarro nullified Miami from using both wings because of the Mexican’s tendency to drift inward.

This is where the question of shoe-horning comes in.

Should Neville sacrifice team success and tactics just to squeeze in a player that doesn’t fit his vision? Or should he start his big-name players because the optics would look bad if they’re out of the team for an extended amount of time?

The NYCFC game was a prime example of this conundrum. Going forward Neville needs to find a healthy balance between star power and practicality.

What’s Next?

Inter Miami’s Designated Players have been a hot topic this season.

With the reports that Miami is looking to move on several players this offseason, next year’s IMCF will look quite different:

🚨 | Some mid game news from The Athletic. Inter Miami are looking to move several players within the league or outside of it:https://t.co/UwXP3KcXpq pic.twitter.com/0846iJH1Yu

— Alex Windley ☀️ (@aaw_1998) August 5, 2021

Inter Miami has a decent chance of making the playoffs. The loss against NYCFC aside, Neville’s men went on a four-game unbeaten streak where they picked up eight points.

It’s not impossible, but with qualification coming down to the wire, Neville must find a consistent lineup. Inter Miami can play good football, but, it’s up to the coaching staff to find the right combination of players to fulfill Neville’s vision.

Photo | Luis Pabon