Phil Neville provides Inter Miami injury updates ahead of meeting with Chicago Fire
Inter Miami's head coach touched on the health of Robbie Robinson, Ryan Shawcross, and Ventura Alvarado
Robbie Robinson will likely be back in the match-day roster on Wednesday night, but it is unlikely he plays as a starter.
Inter Miami head coach Phil Neville provided an injury update on the team’s walking wounded on Tuesday ahead of the midweek affair with the Chicago Fire. Neville stated that centerbacks Ryan Shawcross and Ventura Alvarado will miss the game as they nurse their ways back to full health, but that Robinson should be available after missing the previous two games.
“Ryan and Ventura Alvarado will be out for this game. We think we have got Robbie back,” said Neville. “He is back from the concussion protocol. He has trained today for the first time, I would say, with the team, so we are just going to see how he is in terms of fitness.
“He has done nothing for 12 to 13 days since (taking the knock vs. Orlando City), so it is a big ask for him to probably start or play major minutes tomorrow.”
Having Robinson back, even if only as a bench option, would certainly be a boost for an Inter Miami attack that has scored just 15 times in 17 matches this season. That attacking production is the second lowest in the league, and has to be improved if the Eastern Conference’s 12th-placed side is going to make a push for the playoffs.
Robinson’s speed and willingness to go at defenders out on the left flank has helped Inter Miami in the final third when he has been available, but a number of injury issues have prevented him from seeing the field more consistently in his second professional season.
“I have sat down and had a couple of conversations with him and given live examples of my experience of having that durability to play week in, week out, of playing through knocks and bruises, of having the ability to train every single day to a really high level that he has got. That is something that has probably been missing from him since he signed with Inter Miami.
“Even though he is only 22, he is still only really young in terms of how to be a professional footballer at the top level,” said Neville. “… It is about churning out performances and results and appearances. You look at Gonzalo (Higuain) and Victor Ulloa. They train every single day, they play every single game, and sometimes you have got to play through a little bit of pain and strain and tiredness and fatigue.
“That is something he is learning and he is developing.”