Inter Miami secures playoff spot with 4-1 victory over Orlando City
David Beckham’s Inter Miami secures MLS playoff spot with 4-1 victory over Orlando City as Gonzalo Higuain extends his goal streak to five games and delays his swansong
- The Herons booked its second MLS playoffs ticket in the club’s four-year history
- Higuain, 34, scored for the fifth consecutive game on Wednesday evening
- ‘El Pepita’ announced that he’d be retiring after the end of the 2022 MLS season
- Inter Miami next plays its final match of the regular season against CF Montreal
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David Beckham’s Inter Miami has booked a spot in the MLS playoffs for the second time in the club’s four-year history with a 4-1 victory over rivals Orland City, with Gonzalo Higuain striking twice to extend his final ever season prior to retirement.
The Herons took an early lead in the first minute thanks to a chip from 22-year-old forward Leonardo Campana, who is on loan at the club from Wolverhampton, before Higuain scored a brace prior to half time.
Ariel Lassister’s put Miami 4-1 after the break before Ercan Kara scored a consolation goal in the 71st minute for Orlando.
Fans at Miami’s DRV PNK stadium sang Higuain’s name through the 90 minutes while some of them also held signs thanking ‘El Pipita’ for his two-year stint at the club – a day after the Argentine announced that he would be hanging up his boots following the end of the 2022 MLS regular season.
Inter Miami striker Gonzalo Higuain celebrates a goal after scoring in the first half vs Orlando
‘After the most wonderful career I could have had, I feel that football has given me so much,’ Higuain told reporters on Monday. ‘Many thanks to those who have always believed in me … the time has come to say goodbye.’
The 34-year-old has scored 27 goals in 65 appearances for Miami since joining in 2020 from Juventus. After Wednesday’s game, fans, players and staff embraced to celebrate the team’s post-season qualification.
The crushing victory also relieved some pre-match pressure on Inter Miami. The team lied in seventh and final playoff spot of the MLS’ Eastern Conference heading into the fixture but now climb to fifth in the rankings going into the ‘Decision Day’ on Sunday.
The first time the Herons made the playoffs was during their 2020 expansion season, although they qualified as the No. 10 seed via a play-in round. The club’s first playoffs appearance also came at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Former Manchester United right-back Phil Neville and his 30-men roster collected 48 points in 33 games (14 wins, draws and 13 losses) to qualify for the post season after finishing in 11th place last year.
Inter Miami are now on a four-game unbeaten streak, heading into Sunday’s final regular season game and last suffered defeat almost a month ago against the Chicago Fire in a 3-1 loss on September 10th.
A tearful Gonzalo Higuain announced his retirement at the end of the MLS season on Monday
Inter Miami head coach Phil Neville has guided The Herons on a four-game winning streak
Higuain is noticeably going out with a bang, scoring six goals in his last four game during Miami’s unbeaten run and has eight over the past seven matches.
The 34-year-old ex-Chelsea, Real Madrid, Napoli, Juventus and River Plate striker has scored 16 goals this season for the club and also has 3 assists in 27 league games.
‘My biggest motivation is helping my teammates,’ Higuain recently told members of the press earlier this week. ‘I think the best gift that I can give to my teammates is to be able to retire as a champion with them because they’ve been there with me, they’ve seen me during my downs this year and they’ve helped me throughout this path.’
‘Not only players, but physios staff, my brother, my family and this is for all of them as well. I want to retire here as a champion, like I deserve to retire and it would be a very special dream.’
‘I know there’s two games left and we really hope that the fans come to the stadium and pack the stadium because it’s very important for us. And then once we get to playoffs, the story is different and my dream is to retire as a champion with all my teammates,’ added the France-born striker.
Higuain made the 2014 World Cup final, where his Argentina team lost 1-0 to Germany in ET
Higuain the 2018-19 Europa League – his only continental trophy – while on loan with Chelsea
At international level, Higuain was a mainstay in Argentina’s national team, scoring 31 goals in 75 appearances. He made two Copa America finals with La Albiceleste and also the Copa America Centenario final 2016, but never won a major trophy with his country. ‘El Pepita’ came almighty close to winning the World Cup in 2014, but loss in the final against Germany in a side that featured Lionel Messi at the time.
At club level, ‘El Pepita’ is highly decorated, winning La Liga with Real Madrid three times, the Cop del Rey and the Supercopa de Espana twice. In Italy, Higuain’s won a Coppa Italia three times with Napoli and Juventus, with whom he also won Serie A three years in a row.
In England, the 34-year-old forward has won the Europa League with Chelsea.
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