Inter Miami CF coach Phil Neville may have emphasized in recent weeks that Rodolfo Pizarro is an important part of his plans, but that hasn’t stopped the Mexican midfielder from being rumored to move on from the club.
Pizarro has been linked to a move back to Liga MX, Mexico’s first-division soccer league, with broadcaster Fernando Cevallos recently reporting that Pizarro could return to Mexico over the summer.
Cevallos added that Chivas and Monterrey are possible destinations for Pizarro if he returned to Liga MX.
Pizarro joined Inter Miami in February 2020 from Monterrey, where he recorded nine goals and three assists in 64 matches across two seasons from 2018-20.
The move to South Florida reunited Pizarro with former Inter Miami coach Diego Alonso, who previously coached Pizarro at Monterrey and Pachuca.
Pizarro, 27, made 58 appearances for Chivas from 2016-18 and recorded 15 goals and 10 assists with the club. He won the CONCACAF Champions League title with Chivas in 2018, with Pizarro being named to the tournament’s best XI. Pizarro also won CONCACAF Champions League with Monterrey in 2019. He started his senior career with Pachuca in 2012 before transferring to Chivas in 2016.
While his time with Inter Miami got off to a strong start, Pizarro hasn’t performed at the level expected from a designated player during his time with the club.
He recorded three goals and an assist in Inter Miami’s first six games in 2020, but didn’t consistently produce as the season progressed and finished last year with four goals and five assists across 19 matches (17 starts).
Pizarro’s production has tailed off even more this year, with zero goals and one assist across six games (five starts).
Federico Higuaín, who was having a more prominent role on Inter Miami over their last few games before the team’s three-week break from play due to FIFA’s men’s international match window, started over Pizarro as Inter Miami’s central attacking midfielder in the team’s win over FC Cincinnati on May 16.
Higuaín, 36, has overall been more effective than Pizarro for the team’s attack despite being in the latter stages of his career because of his ability to make more threatening passes and inject pace into Inter Miami’s offense.
Despite his struggles, Neville has been emphatic that Pizarro is a crucial part of Inter Miami.
“Rodolfo — he’s part of that stability I want. I want him to feel stability in the team. And just because I rested him for one game, I don’t want anyone to think, believe or for him particularly to believe he’s not a massive part of my plans. He is,” Neville said on May 20 following Inter Miami’s win over Cincinnati. “For us to be successful, we need Rodolfo Pizarro to be the best possible player he can be.
“He’s working a little bit too hard. He’s too desperate to succeed and score that goal. He needs to relax and have the confidence we have in him. Being rested and brought out of the match for one game isn’t going to change my opinion. It will happen to the rest of the players as well throughout this long marathon that we’re on.”
Pizarro missed Inter Miami’s last two games before the break due to a hip flexor injury. He was left off Mexico’s men’s national team roster for their CONCACAF Nations League squad, but joined the team for training in Denver while he nursed the injury.
Nonetheless, Neville’s been impressed by Pizarro’s mindset despite his uneven play.
“In terms of his work ethic and sacrifice for the team, he’s been as good as anyone in the team,” Neville said. “He’s just not probably got his rewards in the areas that he wants to contribute more than anything. We spoke at length about him being a big impact player for the team with goals and assists and key passes.
“I suppose that is the area that we now need to see more from Rodolfo. Attitude-wise I am really pleased with him. Now, I want him to get the rewards for the hard work he’s putting in, the sacrifice he is doing for the team and for his teammates.”
Neville added: “Obviously a lot of people talk about Rodolfo and there’s lots of speculation about Rodolfo, but as I keep telling everybody and I tell Rodolfo especially is that we love him in this football club. He’s a big player and a big part of this football club. He’s under no illusions about the levels he wants to be and should be. We need to make sure we support him in getting to those levels we need him to be at.”
Inter Miami have a 2-4-2 record through their first eight games of 2021.
Their next game after the break will be a road matchup against D.C. United on June 19, with Miami’s next home game coming on June 25 versus in-state rival Orlando City.
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