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Inter Miami giving precocious Tomas Aviles the room he needs to grow
Inter Miami CF midfielder Tomas Aviles (6) heads the ball while defended by Toronto FC forward Tyrese Spicer. Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

Inter Miami giving precocious Tomas Aviles the room he needs to grow

By Alyssa Clang  |  Last updated Jan 20, 2025 12:39 PM ET

Forget the Lionel Messi free kicks. Forget the Luis Suarez runs. Forget, even, the borderline unbelievable Jordi Alba wonder strikes from the far edge of the penalty box. 

If you’re looking for a moment that summed up Inter Miami’s 2024 season, it was Game 3 of the first round of the playoffs.

Miami was facing Atlanta, the lowest-ranked team remaining in the East, in a must-win game to advance. The score was 2-2, with Miami in the ascendancy and just 15 minutes left.

Atlanta sent a ball into Miami’s penalty box that was deflected out of trouble. 20-year-old Miami defender Tomas Aviles took the slightest of knocks in the process and fell to the ground, clutching his face. The referee waved for play to continue, but Aviles stayed down, writhing while attempting to draw the foul and stopping play. Miami’s players drifted out of position, haranguing the referee to blow his whistle, while Atlanta’s players sensed an opportunity.

Pedro Amador picked up the ball to the left of the goal. He sent in a looping, speculative ball, and his teammate Bartosz Slisz leaped to meet it. Bang. Slisz's header sealed Atlanta's stunning 3-2 win.

Aviles should’ve been the man to block it, but there he was, rolling on the ground in performative agony, looking for a foul he would never get. His lapse in judgment cost Miami the playoffs.

That was Miami in 2024, a team that built the strongest attack the league had ever seen but one that left a raw 20-year-old alone and bewildered in the center of its back four. It’s no wonder things crashed and burned.

Aviles is one of the more eye-catching players in Miami’s star-studded lineup, and it isn’t always for the right reasons. He spent 2024 alternating between wonderful and woeful, trying and often failing to live up to the lofty expectations set for him by coach Tata Martino.

There’s no question that Aviles is a breathtaking talent. But breathtaking talent needs coaching and support. Miami gave Aviles neither in 2024 and tanked his reputation in the United States. He finished the season with more cards than anyone else in the league.

But as the 2025 season looms — Miami will open its regular season against New York City FC on Feb. 22 — Miami and Aviles are on something of a revenge mission. The team, now coached by ex-Barcelona man Javier Mascherano, is strengthening its defense and focusing on fundamentals. And it’s doing all that by remaining loyal to Aviles and finally giving him the space he needs to grow.

Aviles started Saturday in Miami’s first game of 2025 season, a preseason 2-2 draw against Club America that the MLS team eventually won on penalties. He was far from perfect, but Aviles held his composure until the very end. In the 92nd minute, he scored an improbable goal that drew Miami level. It felt like Aviles making up for the goal he allowed in the playoffs, a header for a header.

Miami needs Aviles to be sharp in 2025. It has a packed calendar featuring five different trophy competitions over the course of 10 months, and Aviles, for all his youth, is still one of Inter Miami's longest-tenured central defenders. Watching Miami invest in Aviles feels like genuine progress for the club.

When we look back on Miami in 2025, this may well be the moment that stands out: an empathetic heel turn to help a player in trouble.

Alyssa Clang

Alyssa is a Boston-born Californian with a passion for global sport. She can yell about misplaced soccer passes in five languages and rattle off the turns of Silverstone in her sleep. You can find her dormant Twitter account at @alyssaclang, but honestly, you’re probably better off finding her here

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