Inter Miami’s Leagues Cup title defense is over, with the Herons crashing out in dramatic fashion against the Columbus Crew.
Taking a 2-0 lead into half-time, the Florida franchise gave up three goals in the second-half to lose 3-2 to the reigning MLS Cup holders, with Inter Miami’s dream of a domestic treble now over with their Leagues Cup elimination.
With no Lionel Messi, it was always going to be a tall order for the Herons to go deep in the competition without their star attacker, who could feature for Inter Miami in their next fixture in 11 days time against FC Cincinnati.
And Crew star Mo Farsi has shared how Columbus were able to make such a strong comeback against Inter Miami.
Mo Farsi reveals error in Inter Miami’s defense vs Columbus Crew
Speaking to MLS’s official website, the Canadian wing-back revealed how Inter Miami gave up a lot of space due to their man-to-man method of defending, with Columbus Crew adjusting their tactics in the second-half to exploit the Herons.
With the Crew arguably the best team in MLS, Wilfried Nancy’s side showed their credentials in a big way with their comeback win against Inter Miami, and the Florida franchise will need to solve this problem ahead of their next fixture.
Farsi said on the comeback win: “A hard game against a good team. Unfortunately, we didn’t start the game very well, but in the second half, we adjusted a couple of things, put our hearts out and we gave everything. At the end of the day, we said, ‘second half, no regrets, we have 45 minutes to come back.’
“Even after the second goal, we just kept pushing, we were in this situation before. They were pressing man-to-man in the first half, so there’s a lot of space in behind. If we’re able to move the ball right, left, we’re going to create space and in counterattack as well, I think we had a lot of space.”
Inter Miami’s defense needs work if they’re to win silverware
Inter Miami are likely to end the year with at least one piece of silverware with the Supporters’ Shield and MLS Cup still in their sights, yet last night’s defeat showed that the defense needs some serious work.
The Herons were allowed to be exploited by the Crew as the Columbus side showed why they’re one of the best teams in North America and a real threat for Inter Miami in the MLS Cup title race.
And in the off-season, Inter Miami need to focus on their backline and their way of defending, with the Florida franchise having problems that need ironing out through training and new signings.