There were three characteristics that made Tata Martino’s Atlanta United in 2017 and 2018 so different from other MLS teams. For one, Martino convinced his players in Atlanta to commit a high-tempo style of play that prioritized verticality going forward.

They also understood how to press in midfield in order to launch their attacks through Miguel Almirón and Josef Martínez. The third element of those Martino sides was their willingness to take risks. His players understood, whether they agreed with his philosophy or not, that few exceptions would be made to how Atlanta played.

Advertisement

Atlanta United maintained its principles of play whether the team played at home or away, and the right personnel led to effective execution of his ideas.

Five years after those tactics helped Atlanta United win an MLS Cup in its second season of existence, Martino must give another young club a distinct identity on the field, although under many different circumstances. Martino and his staff had a clean slate in Atlanta to create the club’s sporting culture. The players were unknown in MLS circles and the expectations were low for a new team in the South.

At Inter Miami, Martino is coaching the world’s best player. His challenge is to not only implement his tactics but do so in a way that suits Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba. It’s a straightforward proposal.

More from The Athletic…

Martino, however, prefers the focus to be on the overall Inter Miami project, rather than on his role as one of the main architects. He pushed back when asked if rebuilding Inter Miami’s culture would be one of his main responsibilities.

“That not only sounds ambitious, but it also puts our staff in the center of everything, and that’s not our intention,” Martino told reporters on July 20, the day before the Inter Miami debuts of Lionel Messi and Busquets. “We’ve started to build our path. There are things that are similar and other aspects that are completely different. In Atlanta we had to build an entire team. Here we’re trying to establish our approach, which based on our decision (to come to Miami), will surely involve the front office. But we have a lot less time for that approach to begin to flourish.”

The 60-year-old Argentine is Inter Miami’s third head coach since the club began MLS play in 2020. The club hasn’t had a defined way of playing in that time. That lack of tactical continuity has contributed to their struggles. But so has Inter Miami’s very visible personnel issues.

Advertisement

Failed signings, particularly high-priced players like Blaise Matuidi and Rodolfo Pizarro, now both former Inter Miami players, have held the club back during their three MLS seasons. The addition of Messi, Busquets and Spain captain Jordi Alba is perhaps the most impressive way an MLS team has ever course-corrected, from a roster perspective.

The three former Barcelona stars are the main attractions in South Florida — high-profile recruits brought to the club by owners Jorge and Jose Mas and David Beckham. However, the importance and timeliness of Inter Miami’s new U-22 signings should not be underestimated. Diego Gómez from Libertad in Paraguay, Facundo Farías from Colón de Santa Fe and Tomás Avilés from Racing Club, were all handpicked by Martino and his staff for very specific reasons.

On August 1, flanked by Alba, Martino described to reporters why the three young South Americans were signed, as well as his role in the process.

“There were some legal issues that arose after the arrivals of (Messi), Busquets and Jordi,” said Martino, referring to the various contractual and visa-related machinations needed to get all three players registered and ready to play. “We could only consider U-22 players, up to three, due to salary considerations and MLS rules. Within that context, and in looking at these players and where the squad needed to improve the most, we chose Diego Gómez, Facundo Farías and Tomás Avilés. They were the first names that we came up with. We made it an objective for ourselves to focus on those three players.”

“The club closed those deals after negotiations that are not easy because these are young, promising players,” Martino continued. “Negotiations with their clubs are always complicated. But Inter Miami did great work. Libertad, Colón and Racing were all inclined to collaborate. I was very involved in all of the negotiations and everyone played a part, even the players.”

Diego Gómez

Center midfielder 

The 20-year-old Paraguayan is a physical, modern, box-to-box midfielder with impressive stamina. Gómez buzzed throughout the pitch for Libertad, using his recognizable hunched-over dribbling style to power past opponents and initiate his team’s attack in transition. With Libertad, fans became accustomed to seeing Gómez crashing the box and contributing actively in the attack.

Advertisement

He made his Inter Miami against Orlando City last week, playing just under 30 minutes in Miami’s 3-1 win. Gómez was seven years old when Martino led Paraguay to the quarterfinals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. He admitted, though, that Martino’s stature in Paraguay, and the prospect of playing with Messi, sealed the deal to come to MLS.

“(Martino) called me and asked me, ‘Why aren’t you here yet? We’re waiting for you,’” Gómez said with a laugh during his first MLS media availability on July 20.  Before his first start against FC Dallas, Gómez said that Martino gives him a lot of confidence.

“I’m really happy about that because he’s the one who brought me here,” Gómez said. “He told me to play vertically and to go to goal.”

Gómez doesn’t have the speed or refined skills of his countryman Almirón, but like Almirón in Atlanta, Gómez will be expected to link defense to attack and push the ball up the field on the dribble. He wants the ball and he can shoot from distance.

Gómez is a disciplined tackler in midfield, but under Martino, he’ll have to improve defensively if the expectation is for him to compete with the current starting midfielders, and play alongside the less mobile Busquets.

Facundo Farías

Winger 

Deemed a jewel of Argentine soccer, Farías, 20, is an intriguing signing mainly because of his positional versatility. Farías has scored 16 goals in 89 appearances for Colón. He’s young, but his ability to finish off plays inside the box and create goal-scoring opportunities is already impressive.

“He’s at another level. He’s the closest comparison that I’ve seen to Carlos Tévez,” said Farías’ former head coach at Colón, Nestor Gorosito, in June. “He’s strong and fast. He understands everything. He’s like those kids who are born like that and all you have to do is add a few things. He has tremendous qualities. He’s the type of player that will make a difference in a league that’s so even, where it’s difficult to find players like him. He’s different. He has enormous potential.”

Advertisement

Farías will play as an inverted winger on the left side, opposite Messi. Because Farías is not a traditional winger, he’ll have the freedom to play between the lines and go to goal, which will free up the left flank for Alba’s darting straight-line runs. Farías is tricky, creative and brave. His aggressiveness should allow him to adapt quickly to Martino’s tactics and physical demands.

“Facundo is an attacking midfielder,” Martino said. “In different schemes he can play as a No. 9, depending on the team’s characteristics.”

Martino will have a decision to make once Farías integrates himself into the team. Current left winger Robert Taylor has established himself as a capable player within Martino’s system. Since Messi and Martino joined Inter Miami, Taylor, 28, has scored three goals and added two assists in three games.

Fortunately for Taylor, he can play in multiple positions, including right fullback, right wing and central midfield. Farías gives Martino another attacking option to what could become a prolific attacking depth chart.

Tomás Avilés

Center back

The youngest of the three U-22 signings, Avilés, 19, will immediately bolster Inter Miami’s struggling backline. Miami has conceded 36 goals in 22 MLS regular season matches this season, resulting in an embarrassing -14 goal difference to date. The team has proven to be very susceptible to set-piece goals, so the 6-foot-1 frame of Avilés will be a welcome addition.

His height, though, is not the principal reason why Martino and his staff earmarked the former Racing Club academy product as a pivotal signing this summer. Avilés played for Chile during last winter’s CONMEBOL South American U-20 Championship, before switching his allegiance to Argentina for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. He’s an ambitious ball-playing center back with the personality that suits Martino’s play style.

“Tomás can play as a center back in a three-man or a four-man backline,” Martino told reporters recently. “He’s good at building play from the back because he can also play as a defensive midfielder. He provides a lot of different alternatives.”

Advertisement

It is not uncommon to see Avilés leave his defensive zone to play inside the opponent’s half, or even have a go at goal. Avilés is an aggressive marker and a confident ball progressor, as well. He has good recovery speed and is a strong 1-v-1 defender.

If those characteristics sound familiar it’s because Martino’s starting central defenders in Atlanta, Michael Parkhurst and Leandro González Pírez, and particularly the latter, had similar qualities. Martino’s Newell’s Old Boys, Barcelona and Atlanta teams featured center backs whose first options were to play vertically and break lines with their passes.

Racing manager Fernando Gago expects the same from his central defenders, so one would expect Avilés to adapt quickly in Miami and compete immediately with current center backs Sergii Kryvtsov, Kamal Miller, and Ryan Sailor. All three center backs are more traditional defenders from a player profile standpoint — none of them venture too far from their assigned positions. If Martino plans to play with a three-man backline in Miami (similar to how Atlanta United played in 2018), Avilés should feature heavily.

Messi, Busquets and Alba are clearly the most important trio of signings in MLS history. The three former Barcelona teammates will garner the most attention at Inter Miami, but their success in America will depend on the effectiveness of the side’s complimentary players. Gómez, Farías and Avilés are young professionals who more clearly define the long-term direction of Inter Miami.

(Top photo of Diego Gomez: Javier Vicencio / Eyepix Group/Future Publishing via Getty Images)