Inter Miami star Luis Suarez travels to face Atlanta United

Inter Miami duo Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez will accompany the team to their away game against Atlanta United on Wednesday.

Miami head coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino confirmed Tuesday morning that both players are available for the games against Atlanta and NYCFC, despite speculation about their participation, according to a post by ESPN’s Lizzy Becherano on X.

The decision to start Suárez and Messi came after the Herons' 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Union last weekend. Messi made his long-awaited comeback from an ankle injury sustained in the Copa América final, scoring a brace and providing an assist.

While Messi could be in the starting lineup on Wednesday, Martino may not want to take any chances with his superstar striker, who just returned from injury, in a game Miami should win without him. Depending on how the game turns out, it's more likely that the 37-year-old will start off the bench in the second half.

The Herons are already without Sergio Busquets and Tomás Avilés, who have received multiple yellow cards at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Five Stripes beat Miami 5-2 at the 71,000-capacity stadium last September when Messi and Jordi Alba were absent due to exhaustion. In early May, Atlanta beat the Herons again at Chase Stadium, winning 3-1 against a strong Miami starting lineup.

Messi has 14 goals and 14 assists in 13 appearances, while Suárez is third in the race for the MLS Golden Boot with 17 goals in 21 appearances. Both players could look to improve their tally against an inconsistent defense that conceded two goals to Nashville SC, a team that has struggled in front of goal all season and has scored 27 goals – the fewest in MLS.

Miami sits first in the Supporters' Shield standings with 62 points from 28 games. The team secured a playoff spot earlier this season and will not take the game against Atlanta lightly, as LA Galaxy sit second in the Supporters' Shield race with 55 points.