After drawing 1-1 with Atlanta United, Orlando City SC conclude the six-game regional resumption with Inter Miami’s first ever visit to Exploria Stadium.
A rivalry fixture, Oscar Pareja‘s side will want revenge after the Lions’ 3-2 defeat at Inter Miami CF Stadium only 21 days ago.
On that night, Inter Miami played with a real chip on their shoulder as they battled to their first ever MLS victory.
Eliminated from Group A at the #MLSisBack Tournament while Orlando City SC made the final, Diego Alonso’s side had significant extra rest.
With The Herons having 33 days to chew over their shortcomings in the bubble, Orlando City SC had just 11 prior to visiting Fort Lauderdale.
Make no mistake; despite Inter Miami struggling so far in MLS, their roster still boasts plenty of talented pieces.
With the clubs’ August 22 meeting coming too fast for new signing Blaise Matuidi, the World Cup winner is in contention for this game after debuting against Nashville SC last Sunday.
Elsewhere, mid-year arrival Leandro González Pírez has now settled in and debuted in the aforementioned 3-2 loss.
In that latest edition of the Sunshine Clásico, the Argentine had his hands full with powerful rookie Daryl Dike scoring and causing mischief all evening.
If the 20-year-old grabs another start here, his battle with González Pírez could hold the key to Orlando City SC grabbing all three points.
And that’s exactly what all Orlando City SC supporters deeply crave, especially since Inter Miami are entering our fortress for the first time.
Freshness may be key in this one with Inter Miami beating Atlanta United 2-1 on Wednesday while Orlando City SC are having a week’s rest.
Orlando City SC vs Inter Miami – Head-to-head stats
After losing the #MLSisBack Tournament Final to Portland Timbers, Orlando City SC were looking to respond quick.
However, they faced an Inter Miami side in an unforgiving mood.
Looking to conquer their own demons after starting life in MLS winless, Diego Alonso’s side ran out deserving 3-2 winners.
With a Julián Carranza brace putting The Herons into a 2-1 half-time lead, Orlando City SC couldn’t live with a committed, energised display.
After Rodolfo Pizarro put Inter Miami 3-1 up just four minutes into the second-half, City had everything to do.
To credit Oscar Pareja‘s side, they kept on fighting and Nani cut the deficit to one by the 80th minute.
Unfortunately for the Lions, it was too little, too late as Inter Miami earned their first ever MLS win, tying the Sunshine Clásico 1-1.
Inter Miami 3 Orlando City SC 2 – Highlights – August 22, 2020 (Credit: Major League Soccer)
It’s deadlock in the Sunshine Clásico right now with one victory apiece.
Nani‘s dramatic stoppage time winner in the #MLSisBack Tournament opener got this game series off to a super dramatic start.
In fairness to the Fort Lauderdale side, they licked their wounds and responded well in the August 22 rematch.
However, Orlando City SC won’t want to give Inter Miami any bragging rights from the first ever league meeting at Exploria Stadium.
Earning three points here would be the perfect way to toast what was been a successful six-game resumption.
Orlando City SC 2 Inter Miami 1 – Highlights – July 8, 2020 (Credit: Club Internacional de Fútbol Miami)
While this Florida rivalry is only two games old, there are some key takeaways from the 180+ minutes.
For instance, Inter Miami took the lead in both games at ESPN Wide World of Sports and Inter Miami CF Stadium.
With Juan Agudelo and Julián Carranza goals putting Orlando City SC on the back foot, it’s time we avoided giving ourselves a mountain to climb.
Reassuringly however, Oscar Pareja‘s side have proved they can claw back losing positions multiple times this season.
Nevertheless, in Orlando City SC‘s two games against Inter Miami, The Herons scored within five minutes of the second-half restart on both occasions.
Orlando City SC form
One man who is undroppable for Orlando City SC right now is rookie striker Daryl Dike.
Scoring his first ever MLS goal against Inter Miami in the clubs’ last meeting, he’s been influential since that game too.
There’s a lot of hype surrounding the 20-year-old at the minute and you can understand why.
After all, the former University of Virginia man has been directly involved in FOUR goals in his first FIVE MLS starts with Orlando City SC.
This form saw Daryl Dike voted the MLS Player of the Month for August – a superb feat for a rookie.
In this streak, he’s bagged THREE goals and ONE assist. The assist helped Benji Michel open the scoring against Atlanta United last Saturday.
Inter Miami form
Contesting FOUR away fixtures in Major League Soccer so far, Inter Miami have lost THREE of these games.
Picking up their first road point at Atlanta United on September 2, there’s a theme to draw from their away defeats however.
Defeated at Los Angeles FC (1-0), D.C. United (2-1) and Nashville SC (1-0) so far, all losses were by one-goal margins.
Enduring a rough start in MLS, Inter Miami’s roster has talent but so far, they’ve struggled to consistently showcase their true potential.
Nashville SC 1 Inter Miami 0 – Highlights – August 30, 2020 (Credit: Nashville Soccer Club)
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Don’t forget, Orlando City SC vs Inter Miami will be shown LIVE on Sky Sports Football in the early hours of Sunday morning at 00:30 (GMT).
You can view our TV Fixture Tracker by clicking here.
GOOD NEWS 🚨 | @OrlandoCitySC 🆚 @InterMiamiCF is LIVE on @SkySports Football in the early hours of Sunday morning. 😁👍🏽📺⚽️
It’s the 7️⃣th live 🦁’s game on Sky so far this season. 👏🏽👏🏽
VIEW TV TRACKER 📺: https://t.co/KV9JvpSaRW#ORLvMIA #OrlandoCity #InterMiamiCF #MLSUK pic.twitter.com/FQ5PVnqmB8
— Orlando City UK 🎗 (@Orlando_CityUK) September 7, 2020