Would the team be better off without Su Shen? Mascherano supports: Attacking him is disrespectful to his career

Tomorrow morning at 6 o'clock, in the quarter-finals of the MLS, Inter Miami will challenge Cincinnati FC away. Before the game, Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano dismissed suggestions that the team performed better without Suarez and stressed that he needed every player in his lineup if he wanted to beat FC Cincinnati on Monday and advance to the Eastern Conference finals.

The team advanced to the knockout stage after defeating Nashville in a best-of-three series in the first round of the MLS playoffs. The final 4-0 victory in the series was achieved in the absence of Suarez. The Uruguayan forward was suspended for one game by MLS for violent behavior and could only watch from the sidelines.

Mascherano said: "We have played 55 games this season and won about 31. In most of the games, Suarez was on the field. To blame a single player individually is not my style, nor is it my way of working, and it is disrespectful to Suarez's career and Luis as a player."

"I have always said that for people like us who knew from the beginning of the season that we would experience a long game. For Cheng's team, if we want to be successful and achieve our goals, I still think so. The team needs everyone to move forward. As a coach, I will make decisions based on what I think the game needs. Cincinnati is not Nashville, and they play differently."

Suarez contributed 10 goals and 10 assists in 28 games during the regular season, helping Inter Miami rank third in the East. The team is now preparing to travel to TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, for the knockout rounds in an effort to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in club history.

When asked whether Monday's game could be called the team's most important game since joining MLS, Mascherano laughed and dismissed the statement.

Mascherano said: "We have been saying this all season, like the CONCACAF Champions League semi-finals, the Club World Cup... every game is more important than the last one, which is of course a good thing. I don't have the idea of 'not winning' at all in my mind. The state of the team at this point in time The state is the best, and I say this not only because of the level we have shown so far, but also because of the atmosphere and state of the team's training every day."

As Inter Miami enters the Eastern Conference semifinals, the lineup remains generally healthy, after many players left the team due to international matches. Messi and De Paul, who participated in Argentina's friendly match against Angola, returned to normal training on Monday; while Ian Foley was injured while playing for the Jamaican team and his availability for Sunday's game is still in doubt.