Inter Miami’s best chance of victory is to stop these two Seattle Sounders stars

Inter Miami is hours away from their rematch against the Seattle Sounders; however, this time it is for an official MLS match.

After a horrible loss against Charlotte FC, the Herons must win on Tuesday night to increase their chances of winning the Supporters’ Shield and to keep competing for a playoff spot.

On Monday morning training, Javier Mascherano confirmed that the injury report for this encounter remains the same: Baltasar Rodriguez, Allen Obando, David Ruiz, and Fafá Picault.

Inter Miami can increase its chances of victory if it modifies one aspect of their game: switching the play. That is the Sounders’ biggest weakness.

Despite this advantage for the Herons, from InterHeron, we bring you two players that Javier Mascherano must stop to win tonight’s game.

Albert Rusnák

The offensive brain of the Seattle Sounders. Rusnák is responsible for connecting the defenders with the strikers. Every ball goes through him, as the Seattle Sounders gamble on fast transitions.

While other players need the ball to be dangerous, the former Real Salt Lake City player creates the danger. His offensive movements and experience help him position himself without a rival close to him to start playing.

His movements without the ball are crucial for the Sounders' attack. The Slovak footballer is currently playing his best football. With 12 goals and seven assists, he has become the most productive player on the team’s roster.

Their manager uses Rusnák as a free man - meaning he doesn’t need to stick to a position, but can float through the other team’s box and field.

Often, you can see him moving between lines or addressing marks to free spaces in other places.

His ability to shoot from anywhere makes him a threat to Inter Miami. Taking into account the bad defense the Herons perform, Jordi Alba should be extra careful about leaving him alone.

Cristian Roldan

The silent and most powerful man on the Seattle roster. The heart of the Sounders midfield. Cristian Roldan plays as a central midfielder.

In addition to balancing the squad, Roldan excels at recovering possession, supporting the build-up play, and making timely runs into attacking positions when required.

His playing style and actions don’t always appear in the match highlights, but in the statistics, he appears, almost always, as the player with the best defending ratings, checking all the boxes that conform to a good midfielder.

Adding that Roldan’s consistency is key to the Sounders' functionality. When the squad struggles to win a game or play as expected, you can count on a high performance by Roldan.

Not every player on the Seattle roster is as consistent as Roldan. Rodrigo De Paul or Tadeo Allende needs to watch his movements and prevent him from touching the ball.

If you stop Roldan, you stop 50% of the Sounders’ ball movement.