This Sunday, June 29, Paris Saint-Germain take on Inter Miami at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium (kick-off 9pm CET, broadcast on DAZN) in the Round of 16 of the 2025 Club World Cup. And, as before every match, here’s a preview of the Parisians’ opponents.
The Inter Miami situation –
This is a young club, founded in 2018 and inserted in MLS from 2020 (without playing) but which has quickly climbed to the top places thanks to a certain investment. Which is supported by the famous David Beckham as owner and president.
And it didn’t take long for the titles to start rolling in, following a series of high-profile transfers. These included Gonzalo Higuain (formerly of Juventus and Real Madrid) and former Barcelona players Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi. The latter marked a turning point for Inter Miami. Inter Miami won the 2023 League Cup and the 2024 Supporters’ Shield.
The season is underway in MLS: Inter Miami are 6th in the Eastern Conference, 2 games behind most teams. In the Club World Cup, it finished 2nd behind Palmeiras on goal difference with 5 points each, while Porto and Al Ahly had just 2 on the scoreboard.
Transfers 2024/2025 –
Source: Transfermarkt.
Departures:
Arrivals:
Key statistics –
This season, Inter Miami have the best attack in the league with 36 goals scored (second-placed Philadelphia is at 34, and last-placed Montreal is at 15), and have the 9th-best defense with 27 goals conceded (New England has the best defense with 15 goals conceded, last-placed DC United is at 38).
Inter Miami’s top scorer is Lionel Messi (38-year-old striker) and, with 10 goals, is among the league’s 5th best (the MLS leaders are Thai Baribo and Sam Surridge with 12 goals). Luis Suarez (38-year-old striker) is Inter Miami’s top passer with 7 assists, and is 2nd in MLS (Anders Dreyer is first with 8 assists).
Inter Miami’s last 5 games –
Only Inter Miami’s possession is shown and their shots are put first (when data is available).
29/05/2025 (Ligue 1) – Inter Miami/Montreal: 4-2. In 4-4-2. 53% possession. 14 shots (4 on target) vs. 11 shots (6 on target).
01/06/2025 (Ligue 1) – Inter Miami/Columbus Crew: 5-1. In 4-4-2. 51% possession. 14 shots, 7 on target vs. 12 shots (1 on target).
06/15/2025 (Ligue 1) – Al Ahly/Inter Miami: 0-0. In 4-4-2. 65% possession. 14 shots, including 6 on target, against 11 shots (8 on target).
19/06/2025 (Ligue 1) – Inter Miami/Porto: 2-1. In 4-4-2. 49% possession. 6 shots, including 5 on target, against 14 shots (3 on target).
06/24/2025 (Ligue 1) – Inter Miami/Palmeiras: 2-2. In 4-4-. 54% possession. 8 shots including 3 on target vs. 22 shots (7 on target).
The 4-4-2 team according to the press (L’Equipe) :
Suarez – Messi
Alba – Busquets – Redondo – Allende
Allen – Falcon – Avilés – Weigandt
Ustari.
Inter Miami’s style of play.
Javier Mascherano’s team (another former Barça player) tries to gain possession of the ball and create chances by multiplying passes, especially short ones. This is done with a rather high level of play, notably by trying to set up the offside trap. The attack is logically driven by its stars, with Suarez and Messi likely to make their mark.
On the other hand, there are major defensive gaps which PSG could try to exploit. Even so, adapting to the opponent’s game against Paris is also a classic.
