Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano heaped praise on Luis Suarez after the Uruguayan stood up in the absence of Lionel Messi to inspire his side to a 4-1 win at Houston Dynamo.
Messi was left out after a busy recent schedule – much to the anger of the Houston fans – but it made no difference to the outcome as Suarez scored one and assisted three more in a vintage display.
The former Liverpool and Barcelona star is now 38 years of age and lacks the mobility that made him one of the best strikers in the world during his pomp but he still has plenty of nous, as he proved once again at Shell Energy Stadium.
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‘Privilege to coach Suarez’
GOLAZO made in URUGUAY 🇺🇾😮💨 pic.twitter.com/kemvWIoKYW
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) March 3, 2025
Mascherano said: “Everything he has done in football, he’s one of the best five center forwards in the world in the last 10 years. He’s played in great teams, he’s had a very big influence on everyone. Not only in Barcelona, but also in Liverpool, Atletico Madrid… Obviously, for me it’s a privilege as a coach to train this type of player.
“We know that Luis is in a stage of his career where we have to try to go and do everything we can because he’s a player who has always helped a lot in the defensive aspect.
“I said it the other day, he’s not only doing everything in the offensive phase, but also everything he gives us in that first pressure, how he organizes his teammates. He’s a very intelligent guy, he understands the game in a very special way, and that’s very difficult to find in football.”
Telasco Segovia scored twice and Tadeo Allende added another as Miami moved on to four points from their first two MLS games of the new season.
Fray red card sours win for Mascherano
The only blip on an otherwise perfect evening for Miami was the dismissal of defender Ian Fray after the final whistle.
Fray pushed Ethan Andrew Bartlow in front of referee Joe Dickerson and was shown a straight red card, much to Mascherano’s fury.
The Argentine said: “I saw the video. Ian did nothing. He did absolutely nothing. He wants to go to the dressing room and the rival holds him by the shirt and tries to get it out once, twice, three times, and the referee is next to him, he’s watching him. That’s what worries me. That’s what worries me, because he didn’t do anything.
“When my players do nothing, I kill for them. Even if it costs whatever it costs. Today again, we were winning 4-1, the game was over, two or three fouls that were not yellow and filled us with yellows, I’m not going to shut up anymore. There are things that I’m not going to shut up about. And in this case, he didn’t do anything. Absolutely nothing.
“Because in the end there is something that cannot be changed, which is reality, what you see with your eyes. And what we all see, that must be considered, that is not subjective.”
Mascherano calls for honesty
He added: “So I would like the journalists who are the ones who see it, also give their opinion on this. When something is wrong, it’s wrong and it’s over. This is how it is for me. As if we were wrong, we will also say it, but honestly, not this one, not the one with Ian.”
Messi is expected to return for the first leg of Miami’s CONCACAF Champions Cup clash with Jamaican side Cavalier on Friday. They return to MLS action on Sunday against Charlotte.
