Playoff-bound Inter Miami aims to cut down on yellow cards heading into final stretch

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Inter Miami is the fourth team in Major League Soccer history to clinch a playoff spot with eight games to spare, and players celebrated with their fans at Chase Stadium on Saturday night as pink fireworks filled the sky following the 2-0 victory against FC Cincinnati.

Dance music blared from the locker room after the game.

Although Lionel Messi was forced to watch from a suite again as he recuperates from an ankle injury, the team had reason to party.

Miami leads the Supporters Shield race with the best record in the league — 56 points on 17 wins, four losses and five ties. Miami is the highest-scoring team with 58 goals. The team’s plus-19 goal differential is second only to defending MLS Cup and Leagues Cup champion Columbus Crew, which boasts a plus-25 differential.

But not all is rosy on the Inter Miami stat sheets as the team heads into the final stretch of the season.

Miami is among the most-penalized teams in MLS with 65 yellow cards and four red cards through 26 games. Only four teams have more cards: D.C. United (76 yellows, seven reds), Toronto FC (74 yellows, five reds), St. Louis City (73 yellows) and Charlotte (66 yellows). The Crew, by contrast, is the most disciplined team with just 26 yellow cards.

Tomas “Toto” Aviles, Inter Miami’s 20-year-old Argentine center back, leads the league with 10 yellow cards in 22 games this season. Twice he was ejected with red cards after receiving two cautions in a game, most recently in the win against Cincinnati.

He will have to miss the road game at Chicago Fire on Saturday as he serves a one-game suspension.

Inter Miami midfielder Tomás Aviles (6) fouls FC Cincinnati midfielder Pavel Bucha (20) in the first half of their MLS match at Chase Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

“Any time you go down to 10 men, which has been multiple times this year, it’s really difficult,” Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender said about the game vs. Cincinnati. “We can’t make these mistakes deeper into the season. We’re getting into high stakes games and a mistake like that could hurt us even more than it did [Saturday]. It’s super important to learn from it.

“We’re competitive. That’s how we play. We’re physical and when someone gets a red card it’s not intentional, but it’s something we have to learn from.”

The other Miami players most likely to get yellow cards are Diego Gomez, who has five in 13 games; Noah Allen with four in 13 games; Marcelo Weigandt with five in 17 games; and Jordi Alba with six in 21 games.

Asked if he is concerned about Aviles’ propensity for committing ill-advised fouls and how to correct that in a young player, Inter Miami coach Tata Martino said: “Continuing to talk to him. He feels very badly about what happened. He is aware that he committed an error that could have cost us a result.

“But, I keep insisting that with young players in particular who have so much quality, the best thing is to talk to them and let him know it’s ok for him to have the temperament, that aggressiveness, because that speaks well of him and what he offers the team; but there is a point at which he has to discern when and where he would commit an error. But I am not here to punish him. On the contrary. I am here to help him grow in the best way possible so he can transform into the player he surely will be if he corrects this because he has huge qualities.”

Luis Suarez voted Player of the Week Inter Miami forward Luis Suarez, who scored two goals in the first six minutes Saturday, was voted MLS Player of the Matchday. The 37-year-old Uruguayan recorded his fourth multigoal MLS game of 2024 as Miami become the first club to clinch a 2024 playoff spot. Suarez has14 goals and five assists in league play in his debut MLS season.

Inter Miami forward Luis Suárez (9) celebrates after scoring a second goal against FC Cincinnati in the first half of their MLS match at Chase Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Suárez’s 0.93 goals per 90 minutes ranks third in MLS among players with at least 10 goals

Uruguay vs. Guatemala friendly The national teams of Uruguay and Guatemala will play a friendly match Sunday at 7 p.m. at Chase Stadium.

Uruguay, which finished in third place in the Copa America this summer, will use the match as a warmup for World Cup 2026 qualifiers against Paraguay Sept. 4 and Venezuela Sept. 7.

Meanwhile, Guatemala is preparing for the CONCACAF Nations League and will play two matches in League A Group A against Martinique and Costa Rica on September 5 and 9.

Tickets for Uruguay vs Guatemala start at $53 and are available on TicketMaster and secondary online ticket outlets.

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