Inter Miami are in a "perfect" position to etch their names into MLS history when they host the New England Revolution on Saturday, with a single-season points record within reach.
That is the view of defender Ian Fray, after Gerardo Martino's men wrapped up the Supporters' Shield – and home advantage for the playoffs – early.
Miami have 71 points with one game of the regular season remaining, and a victory would see them surpass the Revs' all-time high of 73 points from the 2021 campaign.
Fray feels playing at Chase Stadium can help Miami get over the line, saying: "Having home-field advantage is amazing, especially with our fans. It's the perfect situation for us."
Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez were both substitutes for Miami's last game – a late 1-0 win at Toronto FC – as Martino opted to rest the forward duo.
"It was logical that after two complete games, as most of them had played, we would make a rotation," he said.
"We were able to meet the two objectives, for the players to have some rest and to win the game, which is what we wanted. We wanted to be able to achieve the points record."
Opponents New England are playing merely to defend their 2021 honour, sitting some nine points adrift of the playoff picture, 14th in the Eastern Conference standings.
Head coach Caleb Porter, though, has already turned his attention towards what comes next after they missed the postseason for just the second time in six years.
"It's really important, when we're making corrections next year and in the offseason, that we don't throw the baby out with the bathwater," he said.
"That's the tendency in the offseason when you end a season like this. You have to take a deep dive into what went wrong.
"I have to look at myself, I have to coach better, I have to figure out what I can do better. It starts with me."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Inter Miami – Lionel Messi
The favourite to be named this year's MLS MVP, Messi enters the final match of the regular season averaging 1.98 goal contributions per 90 minutes.
Only one player in MLS history has averaged more than 1.40 goal contributions per 90 over a full season before: Carlos Vela (1.62) in 2019 (minimum 1000 minutes played).
New England Revolution – Aljaz Ivacic
New England's 4-0 loss at the Columbus Crew last Saturday was the eighth time this season that the Revs have lost a match by at least three goals. That equals the most three-goal defeats by a team in a single season in MLS history, done four times before.
If they are to avoid making unwanted history against a rampant Miami team, they will need Ivacic to be on top form, though his save percentage of 66% is only the 20th-best figure among the 33 goalkeepers to play 10 MLS matches this year.
MATCH PREDICTION – INTER MIAMI WIN
None of the seven all-time meetings between Miami and New England have ended in draws.
The sides split the season series in each of the previous three years, with both sides winning once in each campaign, while Miami won in New England, 4-1, on April 27 this year.
Miami, on 71 points entering the final day of the season, can break New England's single-season MLS points record of 73 with a win. A victory would also be Miami's 22nd this season, equalling the most in a single season in league history.
New England have lost five straight away matches, including a 4-0 loss to the Crew on Saturday.
The Revs have been outscored 15-1 in those games, so the chances of them denying Miami a slice of history appear slim.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Inter Miami – 67.1%
New England Revolution – 14.9%
Draw – 18.1%
Slot deserves praise for modest approach to Liverpool job – Mills
Arne Slot deserves praise for not being "arrogant" with his approach to succeeding Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool boss, according to Danny Mills.
The Dutchman has made a hugely positive start to life at Anfield since replacing long-serving Klopp ahead of the 2024-25 season.
The 28 points Slot has collected is the joint-most of any manager in their opening 11 Premier League games along with Guus Hiddink at Chelsea.
Liverpool's only blemish on an otherwise perfect start to the top-flight campaign was a 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest in September.
Indeed, only in 2019-20 (31 points) have Liverpool collected more points after 11 games of a Premier League season than their 28 this campaign.
Former Leeds United and Manchester City defender Mills has been particularly impressed by Slot's approach to a new era at Anfield.
"Arne Slot has surprised me," Mills told Stats Perform. "They did have a difficult defeat against Nottingham Forest at home. That was a defeat not many people saw that coming, but the start he's had is unbelievable. It's incredible.
"Training might be slightly different, but the style of play is very similar. The players are comfortable with it. They've been high-energy, closing people down, and playing at 100 miles an hour when they win the ball back.
"It shows managerial intelligence to understand the players' qualities and build on what they had when they were successful. He hasn't overthought it or tinkered too much.
"He hasn’t been arrogant and said, 'I'm going to rip it up and start fresh'. It wasn't broken; it was already successful. He's just added to it."
Liverpool won a first ever Premier League title during Klopp's eight-and-a-half years in charge, as well the Champions League in 2018-19.
Klopp also lifted the FA Cup, two EFL Cups, the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup, setting a high benchmark to follow.
"Liverpool identified the man they wanted, brought him in, and he's been very clever," Mills added. "He looked at the squad and thought, 'these are good players. I don't need to change too much'.
"That's smart because Liverpool were very successful under Klopp. If you come in and rip up the playbook and it doesn't work, players will question why they're not doing what worked under Klopp."
Liverpool have conceded just six goals in the Premier League this season – four fewer than next-best Nottingham Forest.
They are conceding at a rate of around 0.5 goals per game, compared to around 1.1 in Klopp's final season in charge (41 goals in 38 matches).
"Slot has tweaked things slightly, maybe made them more defensively solid, which they needed to really challenge," Mills said. "Championship-winning or Champions League-winning teams are built on solid defences.
"You don't win without that. He's shored up the defence and allowed the players to continue doing what they were doing before."
Rodri: Messi is the greatest player of all time, without any doubt
Manchester City and Spain star Rodri has suggested that Lionel Messi pipped Cristiano Ronaldo as the greatest footballer of all time.
The 28-year-old was recently awarded the 2024 Ballon d'Or as recognition for a period in which he won the Champions League in 2023 and Euro 2024 with Spain the next year.
Ex-Barcelona man Messi has won three of the last four Ballon d'Ors prior to Rodri, with the midfielder claiming that the latter is the greatest "without any doubt" during an interview on Spanish TV.
"Lionel Messi is the greatest player of all time, without any doubt. Cristiano has managed to match Messi without innate talent. But those of us who have played against them can see the difference," said Rodri, speaking to El Hormiguero.
"We didn’t want Cristiano to step into the box because he was lethal there. But with Messi, the danger was everywhere on the pitch."
Ronaldo has scored a total of 928 goals in his career for club and country, winning 34 major trophies including five Champions League titles. He has also won the Ballon d'Or on five occasions.
Messi, meanwhile, has scored 877 goals, won the Champions League on four occasions and the Ballon d'Or five times, most recently in 2023.
Messi is now at Inter Miami, while Rodri is recovering from an ACL injury at Manchester City, although the two faced each other in LaLiga during the midfielder's spells at Villarreal and Atletico Madrid before his Premier League move.
"When Messi got the ball, you’d think: 'Oh, danger'," he added. "When I first started playing against him, I tried to take the ball from him, and he dodged you as if you were a bull in the ring. The feeling I had was that something bad was about to happen."
Bompastor pleased with Chelsea's rotated side in 3-0 Champions League win over Celtic
Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor was delighted with her side's 3-0 home victory over Celtic in the Women's Champions League on Wednesday, which extended her 100% start and secured their place in the quarter-final.
Bompastor's side remain three points above Real Madrid at the top of Group B and can now no longer be caught by third-placed Twente.
"I told the players before the game tonight that it was an opportunity for us to qualify for the quarter-final, and we did that," she told the official club website after the game.
The result comes after a 2-0 victory over Manchester City in the WSL last weekend, which also has them top of that table with seven wins from seven.
"We also remain top of the table, which is also something we want to make sure we achieve. It's great news that we were able to rotate the squad and give opportunities to some players to play a Champions League game again.
"We could rest some players thinking about the Manchester United game [on Sunday]."
One of those players who got on the pitch as a result of that rotation was 17-year-old Lola Brown, who made her professional debut after coming off the bench in the 85th minute.
"It's a special week for her individually, but also for the club," Bompastor said. "I'm really pleased for her and the opportunity for her to come in, especially in a Champions League game.
"She's been training with us and I can see her talent, even if she is young. She's really dynamic as a player, really smart, and really good with the ball. She will progress and this experience tonight will bring her a lot of joy and a lot of confidence.
'As a manager, I worked a lot with the young players, especially when I was at the academy with Lyon, and it's also something special for me when I can give an opportunity to a young player to come in and show themselves. It's really good and shows the good job that the club is doing with young players.'
Aside from Brown, Bompastor made six changes to Chelsea's starting XI for the game and was pleased with the contribution of the players who came in.
"It's been my mindset from the beginning of the season. We play so many games and have to make sure everyone is involved. It's also the opportunity for me to show my trust in the players and the squad.
"It's important because it's not possible for a player to play 90 minutes every three days, especially with a lot of international players who play for their national team and club and travel all around the world. I think that's the way it has to be.'
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
