The memories can’t help but flash back for Inter Miami from a year ago as they approach Game 3 of their first-round best-of-three series in the 2025 MLS Cup playoffs against Nashville SC, but manager Javier Mascherano has urged his squad to forget about the past and keep their focus on the future.
In 2024, Miami opened their first playoffs with Lionel Messi and the star-studded cast as Supporters’ Shield winners, winning Game 1 before dropping the second game of the series and the decisive Game 3 at home, crashing out against the ninth-seed Atlanta United.
This fall, not much has changed. Miami aren’t the top seed; instead, they’re third, facing the sixth-seeded Nashville, but the results have been the same. They won Game 1 at home, lost Game 2 on the road and will have to play a decisive Game 3 on Nov. 8.
“Swallow the poison we feel, hold on to it and let it build up all week so we can unleash it on Saturday at home with our fans. That’s the message,” a frustrated Mascherano told reporters after the Game 2 loss. “Today is a day to be closer than ever to the players, more united than ever, because I have great faith that we’ll turn this around.”
“We need to hold on to all the anger we felt today when the game ended, let it fester and, above all, not let it out before then. Let it out when we have to let it out, which is on Saturday.”
With Game 3 looming, can Miami avoid another catastrophe?
