New England Revolution vs Inter Miami: Preview, predictions and lineups | OneFootball

After a few hiccups when the legendary Lionel Messi was out injured, the Herons have now got their season back on track with recent league triumphs over Sporting Kansas City and Nashville SC. Gerardo 'Tata' Martino's side have climbed to first place in the East with 18 points from 10 games played, and Messi has been at the forefront with a staggering 13 goal involvements in six appearances in 2024.

On the other side of the matchup, it's been a dismal start to the campaign for the Revs under first-year boss Caleb Porter. It's also been a huge fall from grace for one of the more consistent MLS teams that set a single-season points record just three seasons ago. The Revs have collected just four points from eight games played, sitting in the basement of the Eastern Conference.

New England Revolution vs Inter Miami H2H record (Last Five Games)

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New England Revolution team news

DeJuan Jones is set to miss the game through injury / Andrew Katsampes/ISI Photos/GettyImages

Like plenty of MLS sides, the Revs haven't been able to avoid the injury bug in their camp. Key figures like DeJuan Jones, Brandon Bye, Noel Buck and Jonathan Mensah have all missed time this season through injury. However, Buck is considered day-to-day and could feature on Saturday, while the likes of Mensah and Jones will more than likely be out of action until the middle of next month.

Inter Miami team news

Diego Gomez sustained an ankle injury against Nashville / Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/GettyImages

The Herons also have their hands full with injuries, something that Martino has attempted to navigate with Facundo Farias being ruled out for the entire season after sustaining an ACL tear during preseason.

Even after Messi returned from his hamstring injury, several other key players for the Herons remained sidelined, such as Serhiy Kryvstov, Robert Taylor, Leo Campana, and Federico Redondo. Veteran full-back Jordi Alba was added to the long list of unavailable players after he sustained a hamstring injury not too long ago, and the former Spain international is set to return in roughly six weeks. Campana, Kryvstov, Taylor and Redondo are all expected to return the field by mid-May.

Miami's injury problems worsened this past weekend as Diego Gomez sustained an ankle injury and was stretchered off the field during the first half of their win over Nashville. However, the Herons have reportedly moved to sign Paraguay international Matias Rojas to provide competition up front for the attacking department.

It's no coincidence that the Herons have returned to fine form ever since Messi's return to the XI, and you can expect that theme to continue this Saturday. There might be some rumblings about Suarez's availability given that Gillette Stadium has an artificial playing surface, but Messi and Sergio Busquets should both feature at minimum as they've already played on similar surfaces before in MLS.