On Sunday, for the third – and possibly final – time, an Inter Miami team with Lionel Messi on the roster will face the Chicago Fire at Soldier Field. In the first two, Messi didn’t play. The question, asked on countless social media posts, in questions to friends with season tickets – and in numerous text messages to every reporter who covers the team, sometimes from long-lost acquaintances – is will he on Sunday?

Truthfully, the few people who know – all, or almost all of whom travel on Inter Miami’s chartered plane to away games  – aren’t talking. Messi has played three full games (270 minutes) since April 2nd, including 90 minutes on Wednesday. That’s a lot of minutes for anyone, let alone someone who is now closer to 40 than they are to 35 years of age.

Still, Fire Head Coach Gregg Berhalter expects to see the Argentine superstar on the pitch, along with Luis Suárez, saying “he's a guy that wants to compete. He has done well at Soldier Field. Soldier Field is a great stadium, an iconic stadium. Guys like that, they play. They play in games. That's what they do.”

If he does, it changes the game, but the Fire are not without offensive weapons and this edition Chicago’s squad is better prepared to compete against a high-end opponent like Miami than the Fire team that lost to Miami by 4-1 score or than the one that beat Miami by the same scoreline in 2023, in a game where the Fire filled Soldier Field for the first time in team history.

This will almost certainly be the best-attended Fire home game this year, with over 50,000 expected in attendance. Many of those fans will be wearing Miami’s pink or the white and blue of Argentina, but to Berhalter, that doesn’t mean they won’t cheer for the Fire. “I was at the last two games that they played, and you see that there are a lot of people with Messi jerseys and expectedly, right. I mean, he's the best player in the world. We understand that. But what I saw especially in the first game was the tide started to change. Fans start cheering for the Fire as we get the upper hand.”

Can Berhalter’s squad win to their favor once again on Sunday?

Series History

All time: 4W-1D-3LLast match: August 31, 2024: Chicago Fire 1-4 Inter Miami at Soldier Field, Chicago, Ill.

What to Expect

Inter Miami

Many players on Miami’s star studded lineup, from Jordi Alba to from Sergio Busquets to Luis Suárez – and yes, Messi – need no introduction. Behind those aging stars, however, is a talented squad that, taken together form one of the deepest teams in MLS history.

After a 2024 season where Miami set the single-season points record (with 74, one more than New England managed in 2021) but crashed out of the playoffs, Messi’s team saw a considerable overhaul. Sporting Director Chris Henderson – the architect of much of the team behind the aging Barça boys – was shown the door, and head coach Tata Martino departed, reportedly for personal reasons.

The roster was also overhauled, headlined by 22-year-old Telasco Segovia who is tied with Messi with three goals on the campaign so far. The backline was also strengthened, with Maximiliano Falcone and Gonzo Lujan brought in at center back, amongst other changes.

Javier Mascherano replaced Martino in the offseason. The 40-year-old Argentine knows Messi well from years playing together for both club and country, but Mascherano is inexperienced, serving just a handful of years coaching Argentina’s youth teams. This is Mascherano’s first club coaching gig and his first coaching job in any capacity (head coach or assistant) at the senior level.

There were legitimate questions about whether Mascherano, who also lacked any kind of MLS experience, was going to work out. So far, he has, and his team is unbeaten in MLS play and just advanced to the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions Cup. Berhalter credited his early success as a manager to attributes from his playing days, saying “you can see kind of the attributes from him as player how they are translating to him as a coach. The team plays with a ton of intensity. He's laser focused on making sure the team plays to the rhythm that he wants them to. So far, he's gotten good results.”

That intensity is likely why Mascherano didn’t rotate his squad, either in the must-win Champions Cup matches played midweek or in last Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Toronto in MLS play. Can his team keep it up? Can they deliver an electric performance off the backs of the biggest names in the squad as they did against Los Angeles FC on Wednesday?

Or will they look like a team that is readily beatable if you out-work them and take advantage of chances you’re given, as they looked last Sunday against Toronto?

Chicago Fire

For Berhalter, the key to beating Miami isn’t trying to keep a clean sheet. “It sounds strange saying this,” he said on Thursday, “but it's really not about trying to shut them out. It's about trying to win the game. I think if you focus on the shutout, you can get disappointed very quickly. Even with guys like Messi and Suárez, it's not trying to shut them down completely because you can see they’re too good. And so for us, it's about limiting the damage, and again, how do we hurt them when we have the ball.”

As well as Miami have played this year, the Fire aren’t far off from them offensively: Both teams have been averaging two goals scored per game, and although the underlying numbers make Miami look slightly better, the Fire are in a much better place to score against Miami than they were when the two teams met last year.

The difference in results between the two squads has really come down to defense, and although the Fire’s defense has looked better for long stretches of most matches, the team has been prone to lapses in moments that have cost the team. Berhalter pointed out that those kinds of errors will cost his team against Miami, saying that as good as “Messi and Suárez and the rest of their group is, you'll have things in complete control, and then one thing will go wrong and you get punished,” noting that is ultimately led to Toronto conceding a goal in their draw against Miami last week.

Preventing lapses like that would be easier with a first-choice defense, but injuries make that unlikely. Berhalter said that although the team isn’t sure if Jack Elliott and Sam Rogers, who had started to become the team’s preferred center-back pairing early in the season, will be back from injury in time to play on Sunday.

If both Elliott and Rogers aren’t available, Carlos Terán will almost certainly get the start. If both aren’t? Berhalter has two distinct options. One is 36-year-old Omar González, who has experience playing in big games, having won trophies for both club and country, but the other possibility is 16-year-old homegrown Christopher Cupps, who has made the bench for the Fire but has yet to be featured for the first team. After a few shaky minutes leading to New York's only goal in open play last week after coming in cold off the bench, González looked decent and my bet is that he starts, though Cupps could replace him off the bench.

Justin Reynolds is the only natural right-back available for the Fire, with both Leonardo Barroso and Jonathan Dean unavailable due to injury. Last week, Maren Haile-Selassie was put on the pitch in place of Andrew Gutman at left-back, and Omari Glasgow came on for Justin Reynolds at right-back. Haile-Selassie said he’s prepared to play as a full-back again if necessary, saying “I'm a player who can play multiple positions, have the qualities and intelligence for that, and I'm just trying to help the team wherever I can.”

In the attack, Berhalter will have most of his first-choice XI available, including Brian Gutiérrez who is set to return from an injury suffered in training with the U.S. Men’s National Team. Berhalter said that although he will be available to play “some role,” he will likely have limited minutes. Dje D’Avilla, the Fire’s new U-22 Initiative defensive midfielder has also been training with the squad and could make his debut, giving the Fire a physical presence with technical ability. It doesn't sound like either will start, but there's room for a potential surprise if Gutiérrez's recovery comes faster.

Will that be enough to get a result against Miami? Miami will certainly have chances, but with aging players spearheading the attack, they will leave space in behind for counter attacks, a situation likely to be exacerbated because Miami will have tired legs after playing midweek. If the Fire can exploit that space and finish their chances, it should make for a good game.

Projected Starting XI

Panel Predictions

Alex Calabrese

Chicago Fire FC 3 – 2 Inter Miami

This is a Miami team that is just too good right now. Even if they don’t start all of their stars after a taxing midweek game against LAFC, they still know how to win games and should have enough to get over the line.

DJ Hagenwald

Chicago Fire FC 3 – 2 Inter Miami

Tim Hotze

Chicago Fire FC 2 – 2 Inter Miami

This game could easily double those goal numbers, but a 2-2 draw seems likely – if somewhat unsatisfying.

Memo Pizano

Chicago Fire FC 3 – 1 Inter Miami

No Messi, no party.

Max Sánchez Josa

Chicago Fire FC 3 – 2 Inter Miami

While it may be hard to believe, really winnable for the Fire. The front three of Cuypers, Bamba and Zinckernagel will secure a result for the Fire in an intense, close game.

Matt Shabelman

Chicago Fire FC 2 – 2 Inter Miami

John Thornton

Chicago Fire FC 4 – 3 Inter Miami

Match Information and How to Watch

Date and Time: Sunday, April 13th 2025, 3:30 PM CTForecast: Temperatures in upper-50s with a 25% chance of light rainLocation: Soldier Field, Chicago, Ill.TV: Apple TV – MLS Season Pass, Apple TV+ (subscription)