Inter Miami’s Mascherano rues Suárez ban for spitting incident

Inter Miami head coach Javier Mascherano admits the team will lose an important player after Luis Suárez received a three-game suspension from Major League Soccer for spitting on a member of the Seattle Sounders staff after the Leagues Cup final on Aug. 31.

Suárez initially got a six-game ban from Leagues Cup to be observed in the next edition of the tournament before MLS added an additional three-match sanction. Both Suárez and Inter Miami published statements to apologize for the behavior following the final against the Sounders.

“Regarding the suspension, obviously, we accept the decision made by MLS. Obviously, the club has already publicly agreed with that decision,” Mascherano said Friday.

“Luis has also publicly expressed his agreement with the team. We discussed what we had to discuss privately, and well, I think we’ve finally put some closure on that issue, even though clearly none of us liked how the game against Seattle ended and everything that ensued.”

Luis Suárez will miss Inter Miami’s next three games. Getty Images

Suárez will be unable to feature for Inter Miami in the games against Charlotte FC, Seattle and D.C. United.

“Well, clearly we lose a starting player, a player who has been important throughout the season and well, that opens the opportunity for us to look at other things, try to replace him in the best way possible,” Mascherano said.

“Always when we are missing an important player within the team, what we try to do is for the team to replace him in general and not for the individual substitution to try to do for Luis because well, no player is the same as another, so, we have already started to prepare for the game all this week with the mindset of not having only this game but the next two and well, try to do things in the best way to get the three points.”

In addition to the absence of Suárez, Inter Miami will be without Fafà Picault, David Ruiz, Allen Obando and Baltasar Rodriguez due to injuries.

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“I think if there’s one thing I’ve adapted to throughout the season it’s these situations, it’s things that can happen,” said Mascherano.

Lionel Messi, however, will travel to Charlotte for the upcoming match and is expected to feature for the Herons.

The Inter Miami head coach confirmed he trained all week with the club after returning early from international duty with Argentina, choosing to reincorporate with the team instead of traveling to Ecuador for La Albiceleste’s final CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying game.

Inter Miami sit in sixth place on the Eastern Conference table with 46 points in 25 games.