What’s a midfield without a metronome? Lionel Messi may be the conductor of the Inter Miami midfield, but midfielder Sergio Busquets was the player who kept the tempo, and in their opening day loss to Los Angeles FC, his absence was felt. With his retirement at the end of last season, that role has now shifted to Rodrigo De Paul, which will bring growing pains. Add in that Jordi Alba isn’t pushing things up the pitch, and it’s a very different look than the Inter Miami side who won MLS Cup last campaign.

How to watch Inter Miami vs. Orlando City SC, odds

• Date: Sunday, March 1 | Time: 7 p.m. ET
• Location: Inter&Co Stadium — Orlando, Florida
• Live stream: Apple TV
• Odds: Orlando City +250; Draw +290; Inter Miami -105

Make no mistake, this is a very talented team, and German Berterame leading the line will produce plenty of goals, but it’s only fair to expect there to be struggles at this stage of the season after so many changes. Some issues may be of Miami’s own creation, playing friendlies in the middle of the MLS season that devolve into chaos, but they’ll work out over time, and time is something that they have on their side.

Preparing to face an in-state rival, Orlando City SC, the Herons will know what to expect from Oscar Pareja’s team, but the Lions also didn’t start the season on the right foot. Falling to Michael Bradley’s New York Red Bulls to open the season, Orlando fell victim to having circles passed around them to kick off the season. Miami may not have the same youthfulness that the Red Bulls have right now, but it’s something that Miami manager Javier Mascherano will want to replicate. Keep the tempo up, and you’ll have chances against Orlando City.

Improvement is what they’ll look for with the Herons entering Concacaf Champions Cup play this month. In the round of 16, with the road to another trophy on the line, the season kicks into high gear on March 11 with a trip to GEODIS Park to face Nashville SC. That gives them 10 days to figure out their best rotations, and because the pressure is on in knockout tournaments. Inter Miami have shown that they can live up to expectations before, but these will be the moments where they have to prove that without the calm that Busquets instills in the defense.