Luis Suarez’s Game 3 suspension leaves Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami with a big question: what comes next?
The Herons might miss the Uruguayan when they take on Nashville Saturday night, yet his absence could offer some answers as to how they function going forward
Luis Suarez just had to do it again. In fairness, this is what Luis Suarez does: mayhem, chaos, rule-breaking – and often in rather nasty ways.
His latest act? Kicking Nashville’s Andy Najar in the groin during the second half of Inter Miami’s playoff clash. It was the kind of thing Suarez has probably gotten away with countless times – a ball about to enter the box, Najar holding him, Suarez pushing off and flicking his leg with a quick, snapping motion.
Whether he intended to plant his studs in the defender’s groin isn’t clear – that would require a frightening degree of accuracy, a no-look shot for the ages. But the broader point holds: Suarez made a deliberate act to injure an opponent. Few caught it in real time, and there was no punishment on the pitch, but MLS reviewed the play afterward and handed him a one-match suspension. He’ll now miss Saturday’s elimination game against Nashville – if Miami lose, their season ends, and Suarez won’t be on the pitch to help them.
Perhaps more importantly, though, this is a test for the Herons. They have survived without Suarez in the past. They have, arguably, looked better without him at times. And so, it becomes a strange balancing act. Suarez is a key player, to be sure. But they have shown previously that his absence isn’t necessarily damning. And this game – win or lose – might just offer an idea of how a post-Suarez Inter Miami could function, not just in the next few weeks, but also for years to come.
