All eyes will be on Chase Stadium this Saturday night when Inter Miami host New York Red Bulls in an MLS clash between two in-form sides.

The Herons have overcome their Concacaf Champions Cup disappointment to beat Sporting Kansas City, Nashville SC and New England Revolution in their last three MLS outings, propelling them to the top of the Eastern Conference standings.

Good form has also followed New York Red Bulls this season, who sit third in the Eastern Conference and just four points behind Miami having played a game less.

Sandro Schwarz’s team are on a three-game winless streak though, following draws against Chicago Fire, LAFC and Vancouver Whitecaps.

Here’s everything you need to know about the game.

Where to watch Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls

• United States (Apple TV – MLS Season Pass)
• Canada (Apple TV – MLS Season Pass)
• United Kingdom (Apple TV – MLS Season Pass)

Inter Miami team news

Jordi Alba has a hamstring injury and that means his starting spot at left-back should go to Franco Negri.

Serhiy Kryvstov is also ruled out with the same problem, while Miami fans will have to wait a little longer for Federico Redondo to return from a knee injury.

The good news is that Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez are fit and ready to go – a frightening prospect for any defense around the world.

Inter Miami predicted lineup: Callender; Weigandt, Aviles, Freire, Negri; Gressel, Busquets, Ruiz; Messi, Suarez, Taylor.

New York Red Bulls team news

Noah Elle is suspended for Red Bulls after he was sent off last time out against the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Injuries rule Peter Stroud and Serge Ngoma out of contention too, but NYRB have their own star player to look to for inspiration – former Bundesliga star Emil Forsberg, who joined the club in December on a two-year contract with an option for a further 12 months.

New York Red Bulls predicted lineup: Coronel; Dylan Nealis, Sean Nealis, Reyes, Tolkin; Carmona, Edelman, Amaya, Forsberg; Morgan, Vanzeir.

Inter Miami vs New York Red Bulls prediction

One thing’s for sure, goals can be expected at Chase Stadium.

Inter Miami have scored plenty of them with Messi in the team, and there’s been no slowing down former Barcelona teammate Suarez in front of net. The Herons have seen 42 goals fly in over the course of the 11 MLS games they’ve played – conceding has also been a frequent occurance too.

It might not be so easy against a NYRB side who have kept things a little tighter, but the opportunity to hit Miami on the counter could see the game open up pretty quickly. The home team have the quality to win but may come unstuck against a side very difficult to beat.

Prediction: Inter Miami 2-2 New York Red Bulls

Inter Miami CF head coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino shut down the possibility of signing players like Benfica forward Ángel Di María and Boca Juniors goalkeeper Sergio Romero due to Major League Soccer’s strict roster rules.

“The truth is that I have no knowledge, nor do I suspect that economically or legally we are in a position to bring them,” he said to Paraguayan radio Monumental AM 1080.

ESPN Argentina reported on Thursday that Inter Miami is in talks to sign Di María — former Manchester United and Real Madrid player and Lionel Messi’s teammate in Argentina national team — after he finished his contract with Benfica this summer.

– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

“There is nothing that has been officially received from the sports director regarding Ángel [Di María],” Martino added.

“The league has certain economic restrictions, some limits, and we are complying with them well within that rule. But today I do not see any type of hiring as feasible, especially such exceptional players.”

Martino has been vocal about the league’s difficult restrictions in the past, especially after being eliminated by Monterrey in the Concacaf Champions Cup round of 16.

“If MLS doesn’t liberate the various rules it has to have deeper rosters, with injuries and suspensions, Liga MX will continue to have the advantage. Still, I’ve always thought, even while working in Mexico and now working in the US, that the comparison between the two leagues is useless,” he said on April 11.

“MLS still cannot compete with Liga MX at the same level because of roster rules. I think the process will be changing, with alterations coming in the short term.”

Leonardo Campana, Sergio Busquets and Messi currently occupy the team’s three Designated Player slots, while the salaries of players like Luis Suárez and Jordi Alba count towards the total salary capacity of $683,750 this year.

The team would have to offload certain players this summer, generating allocation money and freeing up salary capacity space before compliance day to make room for figures like Di Maria. And Martino didn’t shut down future opportunities to do so.

“It is also true that the transfer book here is closed, it only opens in mid-July and we have to see what can be done when that time arrives. Inter Miami is open to the transfer market, there are always possibilities to continue improving. We will see when the time comes what possibilities we have,” added Martino to the radio show.

For now, the Herons will resort to current players for the ongoing 2024 MLS season and upcoming Leagues Cup tournament, which kicks off on July 24. Inter Miami currently lead the Eastern Conference table with 21 points in 11 games, and face the New York Red Bulls on Saturday at Chase Stadium.

An early mistake on his SQ3 lap saw Lando Norris’ hopes of pole position for the sprint disappear in what the McLaren driver called “a big spiral” at the Miami Grand Prix.

Norris is running a major upgrade on his car this weekend as McLaren has introduced a number of new parts, and was quickest by a comfortable margin in SQ2, raising hopes of being fastest in the session. However, a poor first sector in SQ3 and further mistakes on the soft tire saw him end up ninth on the grid, while his SQ2 time on medium tires would have proven good enough for pole as multiple drivers struggled.

“I just pushed too hard, simple as that,” Norris said. “The car was feeling very good. Just silly to be honest. Couple of mistakes in Turn 1 and just a big spiral from there. A shame, because the team has done a good job, the upgrades were working, so I’m happy with everything, just not with one thing.

“I hope . I mean, the pace was very good, probably one of the quickest. So disappointed with today but I’ll do my best tomorrow.”

Norris’ teammate Oscar Piastri only has around half of the new parts as McLaren opted against risking new mechanical components across both cars, and after securing sixth place he similarly was surprised by the difficulties faced in SQ3.

“I think it was just a really, really tricky session for everybody,” Piastri said. “I don’t know if the track changed a little bit or if we all just thought the soft was going to be a lot better, but my lap felt pretty terrible and it was P6. I think everyone must have just had a bad run. Lando did the quickest lap of the whole qualifying on a medium in SQ2, so a bit strange but I’ll take P6.”

Piastri says he has no worries about degradation in the sprint despite high temperatures in Miami, although he is expecting plenty of action on Saturday.

“It’s going to be tough for everybody I think, but the tires seem to be surviving OK; they’re just very hot. Not too concerned, but I think it could be an exciting sprint. We’ve got a few cars out of position. I feel like nobody’s really had much consistency, so it will be exciting tomorrow.”