Playing in their final tune-up match before the start of the Liga 1 campaign in Peru, Universitario welcome Inter Miami to Estadio Monumental in Lima for a friendly on Wednesday.
Last Friday, the reigning Peruvian champions grabbed a late winner to defeat Panama 2-1, while the Herons won their first pre-season contest over Club America on penalties (3-2) after that match ended in a 2-2 draw.
Match preview
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With a mere three defeats suffered en route to another league title, it was a memorable opening season for Fabian Bustos as the Universitario coach in 2024.
As is usually the case, they are among the front-runners to capture another Liga 1 crown this season, which, if successful, would be their third in a row.
Last season, Los Merengues conceded a mere 10 goals in the Peruvian top flight, the fewest in the league, posting 12 clean sheets on their home field.
So far in the pre-season, the club from Lima have won two of their three encounters but have also conceded in all three of those instances.
Since suffering a 1-0 defeat versus Cesar Vallejo in July, they have won 10 consecutive matches across all competitions at Estadio Monumental.
Wednesday will be the first time Los Cremas face a side from Major League Soccer (MLS), and last season, they claimed points in two of their three home games against teams outside Peru at the Copa Libertadores but lost the last one versus the future champions Botafogo in May (1-0).
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It was a memorable regular season for Inter Miami in 2024, setting an MLS points record (74) while winning the Supporters' Shield with the best record in the league.
That was quickly forgotten, however, when this team, littered with veteran superstars, failed to win their opening-round playoff series with Atlanta United, losing two games to one.
It will be up to Javier Mascherano to right the wrongs from 2024, with the former Argentina youth manager boasting plenty of accolades as a player, including four La Liga titles, alongside Lionel Messi at Barcelona.
Messi, the Inter Miami captain will be one of the many familiar faces that Mascherano will see in Fort Lauderdale as the 40-year-old seeks to win his first trophy as a manager, guiding Argentina to the quarter-finals at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
Miami have won just one of their previous 13 pre-season affairs in normal time, claiming a 4-1 triumph over the Hong Kong League XI all-stars last February.
The Herons have not won a pre-season friendly versus a South American opponent since defeating Universitario 4-0 in Fort Lauderdale in January 2022.
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Team News
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Ahead of the new campaign, Universitario have added several new faces to their squad, including Paolo Reyna and Miguel Vargas on free transfers, with Edison Flores coming from Atlas in Liga MX and Yuriel Celi joining from the Hull City Under-21 team.
Meanwhile, Diego Churin will be expected to help them find the back of the net more often this season, with the former top goalscorer in the Paraguayan Primera Division signing from Cerro Porteno, and the club will hope that Jairo Velez - on loan from Universidad Cesar Vallejo - can add some depth to the midfield.
Reyna opened the scoring for them in their friendly with the Panamanians, while a 99th-minute penalty converted by Jose Rivera gave them the victory.
Inter Miami have also added new faces in the transfer window, such as Telasco Segovia (Casa Pia), Rocco Rios Novo (Lanus), Gonzalo Lujan (San Lorenzo), Tadeo Allende (Celta Vigo) and Fafa Picault (Vancouver Whitecaps).
Perhaps the biggest name to depart the team during off-season was Leonardo Campana, who signed with the New England Revolution, while Serhiy Kryvtsov had his contract option declined and the loan of Nicolas Freire ended with the Argentine joining Mexican side Pumas.
Messi and Tomas Aviles scored in their match with Club America, while Rios Novo stopped two penalties, with Santiago Morales slotting home the winning spot kick.
Universitario possible starting lineup:
Britos; Riveros, Corzo, Inga, Reyna; Velez, Costa, Polo; E. Flores, Churin, Guedes
Inter Miami possible starting lineup:
Rios Novo; Weigandt, Aviles, Martinez, Alba; Gressel, Busquets, Segovia, Ruiz; Messi, Suarez
We say: Universitario 1-3 Inter Miami
While this is only a friendly, we expect to see two sides eager to be in form ahead of a big season for each and in the end, we trust the attacking depth of Miami more than what Universitario possess.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
