Inter Miami will be looking to stay in first place in the Eastern Conference on Saturday when they travel to New Jersey to face the New York Red Bulls. The kick-off is scheduled for 2 PM ET at Harrison Field. Miami will likely be without Lionel Messi here, who suffered an injury last week in the CONCACAF Champions League. The forward was pulled from the Argentine squad as a result. The visitors did manage to win 3-1 last time out despite Messi being unavailable, beating DC United. As for NY, they suffered a brutal 3-0 defeat to the defending champion Columbus Crew. Keep reading for the NY Red Bulls vs Inter Miami picks.
Before we get into the odds, match preview, and picks, check out our MLS betting page if you plan to put money down on this game.
The Red Bulls are a slim favorite here at home with +126 odds. Inter Miami returns at +207. A draw meanwhile is priced at +274. The two sides split their season series in 23′ with one victory apiece, with the Herons running out 2-0 winners last July.
New York essentially always makes the playoffs, but they’ve failed to get past the first round in five straight seasons. The Red Bulls will be hoping it’s a different story in 2024, where the side is 2-1-1 thus far. The campaign started with a draw against Nashville SC before 2-1 wins over the Houston Dynamo and FC Dallas. But, NY then came up against the title-holders Columbus, who ripped through them.
The Crew were two goals to the good by the 56th minute and added a third only 10 minutes later to essentially seal the deal. The Red Bulls struggled immensely to muster up any opportunities, registering a mere three shots on target, with just two on target. It was a very poor performance and one New York will want to respond from. Midfielder Lewis Morgan is their most clinical figure thus far, scoring twice in four appearances. Emil Forsberg, the former RB Leipzig man, has also netted once and supplied an assist.
Although Messi is probably going to be watching from the sidelines here, the Red Bulls will have their hands full offensively. Luis Suarez is firing on all cylinders to begin his MLS tenure, while the likes of Robert Taylor and Leonardo Campana are also capable of producing the goods. New York needs to be better defensively. They’ve yet to lose on home soil this term.
Inter Miami is the most popular club in the MLS with Messi at the forefront. No surprise. But, there’s also a plethora of other talent in this squad. Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, and Suarez have all joined their former Barca teammate across the pond, forming a scary team that is more than capable of lifting the MLS Cup at the season’s end. Tata Martino’s men are definitely heading in the right direction, beginning the season with a 3-1-1 record, grabbing wins over Salt Lake, Orlando City, and DC United. The only loss was against CF Montreal where Messi wasn’t playing.
Miami went down 1-0 early against DC last weekend but quickly drew level through Campana. Suarez then came on as a second-half substitute and proceeded to score a brace, helping his side snag the full three points. The Uruguayan is now up to four goals and three assists in five appearances. Three of those outings were as a sub, too. Needless to say, Suarez is doing his part and he’ll be even more important if Messi misses any extended time.
Martino’s group currently leads the MLS in goals with 2.6 per game. Messi has also netted three times. While this team is undoubtedly better when the Argentine is on the pitch, there are enough other players who can also get it done in the final third. Defensively, Miami is also showing well, conceding only five times in as many matches.
Obviously Inter Miami isn’t as electrifying without Messi, but I do like how they’re performing overall. I expect the visitors to grab another victory here and hand the Red Bulls a second straight loss. Take the moneyline, it offers great value.
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