Denver, CO– The Colorado Rapids will play at Empower Field at Mile High for the first time since the opening of Dick’s Sporting Goods Park to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the club (and Messi is coming to town). The Colorado Rapids (4-0-3, 6th West) will host Inter Miami (3-3-1, 3rd East) for the first time since Lionel Messi joined the Florida side. Most of the headlines will revolve around the Argentinian. Colorado will be tasked with taking over the show in their own home. How will Wells and Co. try to stop the hype and Inter Miami? Let’s take a look at the matchup.
When: Saturday, April 18th @ 2:30 p.m. MST
Where: Empower Field at Mile High
TV/Streaming: Apple TV
Rapids Put Six on Houston
Colorado continued their historic goal-scoring form to start the season with a six-goal game against the Houston Dynamo. It was the first game that Colorado scored six in since the Prairie Dog Plague game against Montreal in 2019. Kei Kamara scored a hat-trick (and an own goal) in a 6-3 win. There was no hat-trick against Houston, but Rapids debutant Kosi Thompson scored twice and assisted once in his first match for Colorado. Rafa scored a brace thanks to a late penalty. Josh Atencio got his first in Rapids colors, while an own goal made it an even half dozen for the Rapids.
While it was a comprehensive victory, there are still some concerns for Colorado. Conceding twice isn’t ideal, and the number of chances the Dynamo side had wasn’t great. The expected goal numbers tell a different story from the final score. The two teams were close. The Rapids had 2.72, while Houston had 2.61, and Colorado had a late penalty to boost those numbers. On another night, this could have gone a different way. Fortunately, the game is played on grass and not in the stats, and Colorado was clearly the better side on the night and thoroughly deserved all three points.Â
One thing that Matt Wells’ led Rapids side has been good at that not many other Rapids teams have is responding after conceding. Colorado did not take long to respond to both Houston goals. It took four minutes after Houston’s first, and two minutes after Houston’s second. Colorado did the same against Sporting KC and NYCFC. Good teams can get punched in the face and respond well. Wells has his team doing just that.
Lineup Prediction:
Steffen (c) / Thompson, Herrington, Holding, Travis / Frederick, Ojediran, Aaronson / Sealy, Navarro, Yapi
It is the same four on the injury report for this game as against the Houston Dynamo, with Jackson Travis returning after serving his suspension. Miguel Navarro stays on the injury report, but this time due to a hamstring injury. Reggie Cannon and Connor Ronan are hopefully closer to returning, while Ted Ku-DiPietro will be out for the foreseeable future.
A midweek game against Union Omaha in the US Open Cup was a chance to rotate the squad and see some players who would usually not get playing time. Or so it looked, as Matt Wells played a pretty strong lineup that saw off the USL League One side 1-0 midweek. This complicates things for this weekend’s lineups. It would make the most sense to field a full-strength team, whatever that means for Wells. Despite some key players playing on Tuesday, it doesn’t seem like that would keep anyone out for this game. Wells will have to manage his squad with a trip to LAFC this midweek.
There are still many questions about this team and who the strongest eleven players are. Wayne Frederick has been a nice surprise this season, but Josh Atencio has played well as of late. It’s hard to see Hamzat Ojediran not start. The winger room is filling up nicely. Georgi Minoungou will almost certainly become a full-time starter, but he is not a half-back super sub to have for now. This squad has the depth that many Rapids squads of the past have lacked, and it’s a headache, along with being fortuitous.
A Team Without a Head Coach
It was a shock when Tom Bogert reported that Javier Mascherano was out as Inter Miami head coach. Just days before Miami made the trip to Colorado, Mascherano parted ways with the team. It was later reported that it was Mascherano’s decision. While little is known about his departure, Miami will be without a head coach in Colorado.
Poor results were certainly not the reason that Mascherano parted ways with the club. Inter Miami sit third in the East, and continue to have one of the most star-studded teams in the league. After starting the season with a tough 3-0 loss to LAFC, they have gone undefeated in their last eight games, but have drawn five of those games. They also played most of those games on the road, as their new stadium was only recently completed.
Miami has played two games at Nu Stadium since its opening, and they have been disappointing draws against Austin and New York Red Bulls. Both teams don’t scream powerhouses in MLS, so cracks may be showing for this Miami side. Either way, the Florida side coming to Colorado will be a dangerous one, and the Rapids will have to be at their best in front of over 70,000 fans.
Prediction: An almost full capacity Mile High stadium gets a treat of a game, and Colorado comes out on top. Rapids win 5-4.
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Matt Pollard 
Eamon Shaw 