Following Saturday’s crucial 2-1 win over Orlando City at Inter Miami CF Stadium in the team’s push to qualify for the playoffs, Inter Miami CF (6-11-3, 21 points) travels for its first matchup of the regular season against FC Dallas (6-5-7, 25 points). The midweek match at Toyota Stadium will kick off on Wednesday, Oct. 28, at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Regional fans will be able to watch the game live on MyTV33, the free Inter Miami App, and the Univision 23 App, as well as listen on Spanish radio via Univision Miami’s WQBA 1140 AM and the Uforia App. Fans worldwide can also tune in to live commentary on the Club’s App. Download and Register your Profile here: https://www.intermiamicf.com/en/club/app.
"Nothing else crosses our minds but qualifying for the playoffs. Our energy is going toward playing well to be able to qualify," said manager Diego Alonso. "Regarding Dallas, they look like a very good team. I think that they are a complete team; they attack well, defend well, press well. It will definitely be a difficult match."
Inter Miami will look to keep the team’s positive momentum going just four days after a pivotal win at home against Orlando City SC. The match was the Club’s first played in front of a reduced capacity, as Inter Miami CF Stadium opened its doors to a limited number of Season Ticket Members. The match also saw the team earn a hard-fought 2-1 victory with an own goal in the 45th minute after a powerful shot from midfielder Blaise Matuidi was deflected into the net, and a late winner scored by defender Leandro González Pirez in the 89th minute following a precise corner kick delivery from winger Lewis Morgan.
LGP, who was donning the captain’s armband in the absence of Luis Robles and Gonzalo HiguaÃn and was selected as the Heineken Man of the Match, scored his first goal of the season. Morgan, meanwhile, registered his seventh assist, still the most on the team and currently fifth in MLS. Both LGP and Morgan were selected to MLS’s Team of the Week due to their stellar performances.
Wednesday’s road match will be the first between Inter Miami and FC Dallas. With three matches remaining in the team’s inaugural regular season, Inter Miami is still in the playoff hunt, currently occupying the last playoff spot on the Eastern Conference table.
Forward Gonzalo HiguaÃn will be available for selection after serving a one-match suspension on Saturday.
Inter Miami’s Brek Shea and Victor Ulloa could face their former side in the midweek clash. Defender/midfielder Shea was drafted second overall in the 2008 MLS SuperDraft by FC Dallas and played 103 matches for the team between 2008 and 2012, earning 2011 MLS Best XI and 2011 MLS All-Star honors. Meanwhile, midfielder Ulloa signed a Homegrown Player contract with FC Dallas in 2010 before going on to make 173 appearances in all competitions from 2011 to 2018, helping the team win the 2016 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and the 2016 Supporters’ Shield.
The matchup could also feature a number of reunions for members of both sides, as Inter Miami players Juan Agudelo and Rodolfo Pizarro could face former teammates Matt Hedges and Franco Jara respectively. Agudelo shared the pitch as teammates with Dallas defender Hedges on the U.S. Men’s National Team in a 2017 Concacaf Gold Cup match. Hedges was also teammates with Ulloa at FC Dallas and with Shea with both FC Dallas and the USMNT. Meanwhile, Pizarro and Jara were teammates at LigaMX side C.F. Pachuca from 2015 to 2016, making 38 appearances together for the team. At Pachuca, Jara also played under the tutelage of Inter Miami manager Alonso from 2016 to 2018. Alonso previously defeated FC Dallas in the semifinals of the 2017 Concacaf Champions League while managing Pachuca as well.
Additionally, Inter Miami center back LGP previously faced off against Jara twice during his stint with prestigious Argentine side Club Atlético River Plate and once with LigaMX team Club Tijuana. Meanwhile, Club defender Andrés Reyes could face FC Dallas’ Andrés Ricaurte after previously facing his compatriot once during his time as an Atlético Nacional player.
Dallas will enter Wednesday’s match following a goalless draw on the road against Real Salt Lake. The team currently sits sixth in the Western Conference table, having compiled a record of six wins, seven draws and five losses in 2020, and has been led by forward Jara, who leads the team with five goals, and midfielder Santiago Mosquera, who has registered four goals so far this season.
