As June approached, many MLS followers and pundits expected Inter Miami to slip from its perch atop the league standings because Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez were headed to their national teams for Copa America.
Messi and Suarez had combined for 24 goals and 18 assists in 16 games, so common sense said there would be a drop without them. But coach Tata Martino and his pink-clad players were determined to prove they had enough depth and drive to win without the dynamic duo; and that they have.
Heading into the road game Wednesday at Charlotte FC, Inter Miami has won all three games without Messi and Suarez. And they were not easy opponents. Miami beat Philadelphia Union on the road, defending MLS Cup champion Columbus Crew at home and Nashville SC on the road and outscored opponents 6-3.
Inter Miami remains in first place in the Eastern Conference and leads the Supporters Shield race with the league’s best record. Miami has 44 points through 21 games with 13 wins, three losses and five ties. They have scored a league-best 48 goals and boast a plus-18 goal differential.
With three consecutive road games in a week, the team opted not to return to South Florida after the Nashville win on Saturday but to remain on the road. The team trained in Nashville for a few days, traveled to Charlotte on Tuesday, will play in Charlotte Wednesday (7:30 p.m., AppleTV), train in Charlotte Thursday, travel to Cincinnati Friday and play there Saturday.
Assistant coach Javi Morales said the team has bonded over the recent victories and the extra time on the road together helps. Gressel agreed.
“The mood is good because of the form we’ve been in,” Gressel said. “It’s relaxed, it’s loose, but I feel like we’ve found the right recipe of when to turn it on and be intense and ready for games. We showed that against Nashville, coming off two good performances. We’re dialed in, and that gives us a lot of confidence going forward.”
Gressel said the team is determined to keep the streak going the rest of the week. Charlotte is in sixth place in the East and has lost just one of its past five games. Cincinnati has been breathing down Miami’s neck all season, in second place with 42 points, just two short of Miami’s league-leading 44.
“We know we have two challenges ahead of us,” Gressel said. “We want to have positive results and solidify ourselves on top of the table and continue to prove some doubters wrong who said we couldn’t do it in June…We know the storylines. We know people were saying Copa America is coming up, what’s going to happen to Miami? You’re going to lose all these guys and that drives us to show that there was a team around those two or three guys.”
The recent win streak was extra special for the team because it included the return of Ian Fray, Fede Redondo and Diego Gomez from long-term injuries. Fray had not played in a year after undergoing a third ACL surgery over a two-year span. Redondo and Gomez were out for three months with leg injuries and were back in action at Nashville. Redondo played 90 minutes, Gomez played almost a full game before exiting with cramps.
Fray, a 21-year-old center back from Coconut Creek who got his start with a youth club in Miramar, has been a promising prospect since he joined the Inter Miami youth academy. Finally, he is getting to show what coaches and teammates had seen in spurts between his injuries.
Fray scored a goal against Columbus in his first game back June 19 and scored again on a header against Nashville.
“Ian is a kid we’ve known from the academy, and we know all he went through, and I told him he’s a warrior,” Morales said. “I’m very, very happy to see him on the field playing and scoring. He has a bright future.”
Gressel joked that his jersey swap with Fray may have given the young player good luck.
“Since he gave me No. 24 at the beginning of the season (Gressel’s preferred number), I told him this would bring him better juju,” Gressel said, smiling. “I was going to take 17, and ever since he came back and we connected on his two goals, I was like, `Thank God we stitched numbers and that’s what made it happen for you.”
Then, Gressel got more serious.
“I’m super happy for him, for him to go through what he’s gone through with the three serious injuries and come back like this now, and immediately integrated with two goals and playing really well, it’s something special,” Gressel said. “It gives me goosebumps right now thinking of what he’s gone through and seeing how much he worked. He’s a real example for a lot of people in this world that get knocked down a lot and they can draw energy from his energy. I certainly do.”
How to Watch: Inter Miami vs Charlotte FC kicks off Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. on MLS Season Pass at Apple TV.
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